WARTIME LIES

In a stark style reminiscent of Jerzy Kosinski’s THE PAINTED BIRD, this first-person narrative recounts the experiences of a Jewish youth fleeing the Nazis in wartime Poland. Whereas Kosinski’s bestseller delivered a dream-like stream of ghastly events, Begley dwells on quotidian minutiae and characterization. Edwardson gives a measured, detached reading that would prove boring in less disturbing material. Here it is merciful. Y.R. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 00]