Contains possible plot spoilers


I didn't like the writing, so much that when the wartime part was over I put the book away. Situations were unbelievable: mother is raped to an extent that she dies, but before that she spends an entire night passing on her wisdom to her (ugly) daughter. Beautiful daughter is treated kindly by all, and when she toils miles to deliver ugly smart daughter to hospital in wheelbarrow, beautiful daughter's hands suffer terribly and receive major attention while raped ugly daughter kind of languishes off-stage. Lots of cliches, like bad guys speaking "roughly." I really didn't want to read any more, and my opinion of New York Times reviewer Janet Maslin has really gone down!