City of Thieves

City of Thieves was a very fortuitous choice considering I had just finished The Madonnas of Leningrad.  Both stories take place in Leningrad at virtually the same time, helping to give a broader picture of the massive devastation that took over this city during the Second World War.

Considering the subject matter, I fully expected the subject matter to be serious.  However, David Benioff story is quite humorous.   A looter and deserter are spared execution in exchange for the completion of a ridiculous mission:  to obtain a dozen eggs for a Soviet colonel's daughter's wedding cake.  Leningrad has been cut off from all supplies.  Residents are eating such delicacies as bars of glue made from the binding of books or bread which is mostly composed of sawdust, yet this colonel believes a dozen eggs can be found.

We follow the two young men throughout their mission.  This mission leads them through the desolate city of Leningrad and beyond to territories occupied by the Germans.  The book kept me involved and always  questioning what would happen next.  The description and action reads very much like a movie script, which is no surprise as the author is also a screenwriter.