title: Fall of Giants
author: Ken Follet
publisher: Dutton
I have been reading Ken Follet’s works since the early eighties. The first book was “The Eye of the Needle” read out loud while I and a friend drove down to Florida for a golfing vacation. I was hooked and reeled in by his writing style. A behind the scenes look at history (fictional and almost ((ahem)) plausible). So picking up “Fall of Giants” to read was a given.
The first thing that should be noted is that it is book one of a trilogy. I don’t think book two has been written yet. The trilogy will cover a time span of perhaps a hundred years. Book one starts with the brief prologue of Billy, a Welsh miner to be and his initiation into the coal industry. This prologue is a short story in itself. Then the main story begins. It covers the period from January 1914 to January 1924. Honestly? The book is about the First World War: what lead up to it, the war itself and the aftermath.
It is a story about the triumphs and the tribulations of “Class Warfare.” A Welsh coal mining family with the main characters Billy and Ethel, brother and sister. The Earl of Aberowen and family, the Earl and his Russian wife (a princess). Then a German Aristocratic family… A Russian Workers Family… An American “Nouveau Riche” Family… You see the World War through their eyes. Yes, that means a lot of story jumps from one family to another, one character to another. Besides being a book with three parts: before, during and after the war; the story breaks down into dates where the action takes place and mini stories within those dates about one or more of the families and what they did. If you are a bunny rabbit you will be able to keep up with all of the hoping around. If not…
If you never studied this period of history this book will be a good primer for understanding that time period. Not the historical events as they unfolded but the mind-set of that moment in history. It is only a hundred years in the past but baby, you have come a long way. In other ways we haven’t changed at all. I like history when it is revealed through story and not dry facts. This story is entertaining and educational. Though a bit long I got through it rather quickly… for me. I do recommend reading the book. However, be forewarned that some of the scenes are sexual in nature. If you are easily offended or aroused, ignore the book and read something more wholesome.