STONES FROM THE RIVER

Edwards-Fukei's lilting German-accented English is the redeeming feature of this interminable unabridged version of Hegi's novel about a small German town in the decades following WWI. Taking its cue from THE TIN DRUM, Hegi's novel presents twentieth-century German history through the eyes of a dwarf, Trude, whose differences are the focus for viewing all those who don't belong in a society where belonging is everything. The novel's pace is slow, the decades seeming to drift by on the clock of real time. Hegi's depictions of small-town German life are detailed and meticulous and quite fine, but are best experienced in abridged form. D.A.W. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 02]