Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2022. I had so many questions, she admits, as she confronts the past in an epistolary account addressed to her niece, an effort that is part explanation, part expiation. I built up a family tree, adding the most notable subsidiary characters, because as the century unfolds the canvas becomes crowded. Reviewed in the United States on August 17, 2022, Please, first read, and then decide it's a Russian story or GEORGIAN, Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2021. The red century devours a family, and history comes with a pinch of chocolateLike Water for Chocolate, even. Brigitte, The Eighth Life is a sprawling family saga, to be savored for its grandeur, scope and scale Interwoven with love, loss, trumps and tragedy are the uncanny impacts of a family recipe for divine hot chocolate, which just might carry a curse enthralling and satisfying. FIVE STARS Maureen Eppen, Good Reading, This multi-award winning novel is a riveting read You too often want to pause and appreciate delightful twists, intriguing concepts, the catch-your-breath unexpected. The Australian, The Eighth Life is the sort of book that sweeps you along, sustaining a tremendous feeling of urgency, as if the narrator is desperate to get it all out, get it all on paper, before the family curse catches up with her. The Saturday Paper, A harrowing, heartening and utterly engrossing epic novel astonishing A subtle and compelling translation by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin (on the heels of a Georgian version earlier this year) should make this as great a literary phenomenon in English as it has been in German. The Guardian, This is one for long-haul flights or the Christmas lock-in. Aer Lingus. : Sadly the story has no old world feel to it nor does it even have a particularly historical feel to it. When Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell wrote Georgia on My Mind they were of course not referring to the actual country with that name, but it seems as good a title as any for my review. This is probably my best book of the year. It is a very long book, but I regret when I finished reading it. : The red century devours a family, and history comes with a pinch of chocolate, is a sprawling family saga, to be savored for its grandeur, scope and scale Interwoven with love, loss, trumps and tragedy are the uncanny impacts of a family recipe for divine hot chocolate, which just might carry a curse enthralling and satisfying., This multi-award winning novel is a riveting read You too often want to pause and appreciate delightful twists, intriguing concepts, the catch-your-breath unexpected., is the sort of book that sweeps you along, sustaining a tremendous feeling of urgency, as if the narrator is desperate to get it all out, get it all on paper, before the family curse catches up with her., A harrowing, heartening and utterly engrossing epic novel astonishing A subtle and compelling translation by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin (on the heels of a Georgian version earlier this year) should make this as great a literary phenomenon in English as it has been in German., This is one for long-haul flights or the Christmas lock-in.. Through the Russian Revolution and that of World War Two, so we have civil wars and the problems that face Georgia. Not only is this a compelling, sweeping, epic novel about Russia, it is also told from the point of view of the women who suffered, fought, and saw the world through a different lens. Britroyals Menu Britroyals Home Britroyals Home . This is an amazing book. Royal Family. At the heart of this is of course the Jashi women, a family that has a secret, the ingredients to a hot chocolate. SHIPS DIRECTLY FROM AMAZON, delivery tracking number, no-hassle return policy. A caution which is justified: this is a recipe for ecstasy that carries a very bitter aftertaste . It is perhaps for this reason that reading Nino Haratischwilis The Eighth Life, translated by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin, feels so familiar, almost like a wish fulfilled The Eighth Life has deservedly been compared to Tolstoys War & Peace. Barbara Halla, Asymoptote, [A]n epica magnificent, sprawling family saga that captures the suffering and pride of the Georgian people throughout the tumult of the twentieth century. The dynasty begins with a master chocolate maker who has developed a recipe for a chocolate drink that induces an ecstatic mood - but, as the more superstitious of the family believe, it also carries a curse. The novel is patched together from the memories of those who somehow survived, a testament to those who didnt. This story does not shy away from rape and torture, and the truth of war, giving you at times a hard read, but rather like the magical chocolate drink that appears from time to time, this book becomes an addiction in itself and draws you in, making us more aware of the country of Georgia, other such satellite states, and indeed of Russia. Nino Haratischvili's characters come to exuberant life. Tumbling down the years, and across vast expanses of longing and loss, generation after generation of this compelling family hears echoes and sees reflections. Stunning novel. It is perhaps for this reason that reading Nino Haratischwilis, , translated by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin, feels so familiar, almost like a wish fulfilled, has deservedly been compared to Tolstoys. Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2022, Beautifully written. It owes its success to a delicious chocolate recipe, passed down the generations with great solemnity and caution. Edmund Moody of Bury St. Edmunds, county Suffolk, England, born probably about 1495, is the earliest person of the name from whom a descent has been proved in this particular family. Nothing feels forced, nothing feels flashy. You Do, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/books/review/nino-haratischvili-eighth-life.html. Covers many years of Russia/Georgia history. It's a great Russian novel, reminiscent of Pasternak's 'Dr Zhivago', even of Tolstoy's 'War and Peace'. The red century devours a family, and history comes with a pinch of chocolate, is a sprawling family saga, to be savored for its grandeur, scope and scale Interwoven with love, loss, trumps and tragedy are the uncanny impacts of a family recipe for divine hot chocolate, which just might carry a curse enthralling and satisfying., This multi-award winning novel is a riveting read You too often want to pause and appreciate delightful twists, intriguing concepts, the catch-your-breath unexpected., is the sort of book that sweeps you along, sustaining a tremendous feeling of urgency, as if the narrator is desperate to get it all out, get it all on paper, before the family curse catches up with her., A harrowing, heartening and utterly engrossing epic novel astonishing A subtle and compelling translation by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin (on the heels of a Georgian version earlier this year) should make this as great a literary phenomenon in English as it has been in German., This is one for long-haul flights or the Christmas lock-in.. It is moving, sincere, powerfully told. As in 900 pages covering generations of a single family, of the remarkable events and amazing women, in particular, who defined this lineage from the Bolshevik occupation of the country to the early twenty-first century. Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club thats right for you for free. I have certainly met enough women in my life who have expressed this explicitly, especially the stories shared by their mothers and grandmothersthe implication being that we dont get enough of these stories in literature or biographies. Trevin Wax encourages you to rethink some of our societys most common assumptions about identity and the road to happiness. Mary, byname Mary, Queen of Scots, original name Mary Stuart or Mary Stewart, (born December 8, 1542, Linlithgow Palace, West Lothian, Scotlanddied February 8, 1587, Fotheringhay Castle, Northamptonshire, England), queen of Scotland (1542-67) and queen consort of France (1559-60). Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 31, 2020, Nino Haratischvilis The Eighth Life is a multi-generational saga focusing on a Georgian family and written by Niza Jashi for her 12 year-old niece, Brilka, which spans six generations of the Jashi family, the first of whom is Niza's great-great-grandfather, a master chocolatier whose secret recipe for a hot chocolate drink is so addictive that it must be used sparingly in order to avert totally enslavement. I bought the physical book - the international version, if that matters, and WOW is the font TINY. The Eighth Life (for Brilka) is a phenomenal novel right up there with the best of the best. It is a very long book, but I regret when I finished reading it. Heartily recommended., This is a long, rewarding novelably translated through a collaborative process. I sketched a family tree to keep track of all the characters: pious aunts and mean stepmothers, wives and mistresses, lost lovers, poets and filmmakers and pianists and singers, secret agents and loyal soldiers, bandits, torturers, bastard children and favorite children, love triangles and ghosts. Catherine was a daughter of Sir Thomas Parr of Kendall, an official of the royal household. : Not only it gives you a unique perspective on the history of 20th century from the one of a lesser known countries - Georgia. It is sure to be an instant classic. The stories are told with pace and verve; they are significantly different to one another; the characters are well enough delineated that it never feels repetitive. I really enjoyed it and got to love some of the characters after living with them for almost two months. The development of the characters is very careful, detailed, and logical. Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2022. Please try again. Modern western style writing ruins the story. It is epic, fast-moving, full of dashed hopes, vanity, mystery, bureaucracy, brutality, intimate moments amidst seismic, impenetrable forces, private motives competing and sometimes cooperating with nationalistic predispositions, art trying to find a footing against mechanistic and formulaic forces. 1937: a terrible suicide, terror and arrests. Her huge novel shows a double face, its crushing pain and loss nonetheless conveyed with an artful storytellers sheer joy in her craft. Boyd Tonkin, The Financial Times, No doubt Nino Haratischwili is one of the most important voices in contemporary German literature. Die Zeit, [T]his sprawling epic of love and loss The Eighth Life is an expansive and hopeful tale centered on family touched by war and revolution. Foreword Reviews, It is an ambitious undertaking, but the author retains a firm grasp on her material and knows exactly how she wishes to present the human cost and consequences to a family facing war and colliding ideologies I finished by applauding the vision, boldness and passionate commitment. Elizabeth Buchan, Daily Mail, Sometimes I wonder how many people harbor a secret desire to write a book about their familys entire history. : : You will not want to put it down. Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2020. If youre tired of hustling to be the best, take a load off with Scarlet and say the honest and laughable truth along with her: were the worst people in the world! Henry Fitzroy, duke of Richmond, born 1519. You will not want to put it down. 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