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The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore – English Reading Groups Berlin

Moderator- Jan Bild

Feedback of our meetings on Thursday 9th, Wednesday 22nd , Friday 24th and Monday 27th August.

Meet Helen Dunmore Event - Wed April 24th at 19.00 Ingeborg Drewitz Bibliothek.

Helen Dunmore has accepted our invitation to come to Berlin to meet the groups and discuss The Betrayal.

Put the date in your diaries now!!

Stalin‘s Russia in 1952. Helen Dunmore’s The Betrayal fuses personal and public history. Extremely well researched, beautifully written and convincing. Most of us were bowled over. Not an easy read but a very rewarding one.

The Betrayal is set in Leningrad., ten years after the siege. It‘s a world where you must keep your head down,, do what’s dictated, and you might get to live peacefully. On the other hand, you might be arrested and shot, or sent to the gulag, without any warning, at the whim of a state official. People fear displeasing one another, their own family, they fear their neighbours, they fear standing out, of not being “anonymous or average” enough. Everyone in Leningrad is painfully aware that “anybody can go out of favour in the blink of an eye.”

The extreme paranoia that characterised the last days of Stalin’s reign dictates almost every move that the characters in The Betrayal make. ..Dunmore recreates this world for us, through the eyes of a hard-working, loving couple Andrei and Anna and Anna’s younger brother Kolya. They have miraculously survived the siege of Leningrad, all they want is to lead a normal, ordinary life. For a time they succeed, but then it becomes out of the question for them. Step by step we feel their fear and paranoia. Dunmore builds the suspense, revealing the full horror of what it is like to live in a totaliterian state.

Andrei is a doctor in the local hospital, Anna works in a nursery. Anna and Andrei go dutifully about their jobs, planning for the family they want so much to have. They dreamt of a new generation who would “only know about hunger from books.” Their dreams of a better life are shortlived. The harsh reality is that books have been banned in Leningrad and writers, artists, and musicians have either fled or been imprisoned or worse. When Anna and Kolya bury their father’s writing in their dacha’s compost heap. “ it feels like a murder.”

The tension begins with the very first sentence: “It's a fresh June morning, with a trace of humidity, but Russov is sweating.” Russov has several good reasons to sweat, reasons that have nothing at all to do with the weather.

Gorya, the son of a senior State Security official, Volkov, has fallen seriously ill. Russov asks Andrei to take over the case as he is understandably afraid of having to deliver the dire diagnosis himself. Russov knows Andrei will probably agree. Andrei is a very good and caring doctor. He is well known for his compassionate and understanding bedside manner and for being extremely conscientious.,. If Gorya dies, then Andrei will get the blame – no matter what could or could not have been done – and Andrei knows it. Could he have said no to Russov? Gone off sick? Tried to escape to the dacha? We discussed his impossible position. And concluded that he had no real choice.

As his patient’s condition worsens, Andrei thinks: “The blob of sun on the corridor wall wavers. The day shines before him, impossibly ordinary and beautiful. This must be how the dead think of life.” For Volkov is Andrei’s enemy as well as a murderer, a torturer, and an interrogator. But he is also the father of Andrei’s sick patient and Andrei can’t help empathising with him. It is because of this sympathy that he develops a close relationship with the man, as well as with the young patient, a relationship that is ripe for betrayals of several kinds. All the while Andrei is warning himself “Don’t take risks. Don’t stand out.” Sometimes, however, it’s impossible not to stand out.

The pacing of The Betrayal, especially in the first half, is superb.Though an uncomfortable read, it is very gripping. We were all caught up in the drama. All worrying about what would happen to Andrei and Anna and Kolya if Gorya’s outcome isn’t what Volkov wants. Andrei and Anna and the others felt very real to us..

Dunmore is also brilliant at creating atmosphere.The growing menace surrounding Andrei at work, the peaceful contrast of their domestic lives, the nostalgia Anna and Kolya feel when at the dacha, the tender parting when Andrei is arrested., the nightmare of the prison, the inhumanity shown to fellow man, the little kindnesses between people, risking their lives just by sending flowers or a letter. Dunmore’s prose is compelling, convincing and evocative. It has a quiet sort of power, one that fuses the extraordinary with the ordinary in the best possible way. Good, ordinary, everyday people get caught up in terrible, extraordinary circumstances. None of us know how we would react faced with the same situations..

“It seemed as if the official had calculated exactly the amount of despair that each person in the queue needed to feel, each day." "Outside, he would never have believed that three initials scratched into a piece of soap could be so precious," considers a prisoner.

Volkov’s death comes as a complete shock. Does he kill himself because he feels he has betrayed his own son? For not being there at his son’s death? Or is he running away from being sent to the Gulag himself?

"He seems to taste the metal of the gun and a mask of anguish and disgust comes over his face, as if he has tasted poison. For a few seconds, he remains still, apart from the shaking of his hands..."

Why the title The Betrayal? It intrigued everybody, giving rise to intense discussion. Who or what had been betrayed? There were so many layers of betrayal - betrayal of ideals,( of Andrei by Russov) of the Russian people by Stalin, hints of betrayal by other work colleagues, of neighbours, of family. By making the ending less personal, Dunmore emphasises the plight of the millions who were sent to the Gulag which was the ultimate betrayal of the ideals of communism.

In The Betrayal Dunmore gives us an experience beyond most of our understanding.Those with Russian connections, or who have lived in Russia., were more able to understand.

In 1953, Stalin’s purges turned to the medical profession. Prominent doctors were arrested and accused of taking part in the “Doctors’ Plot” to murder party leaders; they were sent to labour camps and executed. It was crazy, brutal, very shocking and depressing. A sobering lesson in a terrifying part of history.

The love, the optimism, the hope of Andrei and Anna sweeten the bitter taste of those times. But for one or two The Betrayal was hard to digest. Just too grim, too unpalatable. Most devoured it eagerly, praising Dunmore’s many talents as a writer, admiring especially her ability as an Englishwoman to capture the essence of such a very Russian experience.

Our Individual Comments

“ The title and the design of the cover misled me. I thought Andrei was going to betray Anna, or the other way around.”

“It brings history to life, the sheer sense of being watched, being afraid, not knowing who to trust.”

“The characters were all three dimensional, even Volkov. Excellent. I shuddered most of the time.”

“ I would never have chosen to read it myself . The hardest part was to read about torture. But I’m thankful to have read it.”

“I liked the book very much. The plain language shows the paranoia, all the characters are human beings, even Volkov. Everything wasn’t told in black and white but in shades of grey.”

“All the best Russian people were sent to the gulag, which has made the Russian people genetically damaged, to a certain extent.”

“ I loved it, it really got under my skin, Russian history became very interesting to me as a result.”

“It showed so well the common person just trying to survive.”

“Nadia, the name of Anna’s baby, means hope, signifying hope at the end of the story.”

“Andre is an idealist, a real human being, he puts his patients first. A truly good man. “

“Both Anna and Andrei have a warm heart and an optimistic attitude. This makes them so special and made the story bearable.”

“I was drawn in from the first sentence. Dunmore writes as though she has taken part herself. It is so well researched. I went to Leningrad myself 3 times in the 80s. The descriptions felt absolutely right.”

“ It was hard for me to understand how oppressed the people felt. I am so lucky not to have lived under these circumstances.”

“I tried to read it on my Summer holidays but it was too depressing. Not ideal holiday reading. Since coming home I have finished it. I found the love story very moving.”

“ For me, I lost interest in the middle, everything was so bad! But I persevered and felt the ending worth the wait.”

“I noticed when I visited Leningrad in 1984 everyone mentioned the siege. When I went back three years ago, no-one referred to it at all.”

“My own father was involved in the siege as a very young German officer. I appreciated the meticulous research.”

“ The siege is not present in my mind., not present in German minds. When I was at school it had the tiniest mention in our history class, a footnote at the bottom of a page.. Now no-one seems to discuss the siege in Germany at all.”

“ It was so grey, so tough to read. Fortunately there were some light touches eg. The tenderness between Andrei and Anna when he is taken away. Their love is real love, without any borders. “

“ I was a bit disappointed I was expecting a twist at the end. But the descriptions were superb.”

“ It was fascinating but so intense and frightening. If I had lived under these conditions I would have been dead in a few days as I always speak my mind!”

“ The English language doesn’t translate well into a Russian story. It just doesn’t seem to fit with the Russian experience. When I overcame this feeling, I really enjoyed the book.”

“ I had the same feeling. I associate the English language with capitalism!”

“Why is an Englishwoman wanting to write about Russian history? I would have preferred a Russian author on this subject but it is a very captivating historical novel. It is so well researched that I changed my mind.”

“An excellent picture of the daily lives of the people, showing just how scared they were. This is very well known to me, I lived in east Berlin”

“My husband travelled a lot in eastern Europe during these times. Dunmore captures the mood and the society very well.”

“ I read it with great interest and horror. The terror gets right into you. The torture is underplayed , using plain language it is more powerful.”

“ So many men were lost in Russia and Germany after the war. Berlin was saved by the hard work of the remaining women.”

“” I assumed that Italian men were invited to Germany after the war to make husbands for the women!”

“ As soon as I read the first conversation betwen the two doctors, I knew I’d like the book. It was shocking to read how the doctors’s natural authority was snuffed out by the state authority.”

“I enjoyed this the most of any of the books we’ve discussed in the groups. I’ve always been interested in Russia and studied Russian. I lived there after Soviet Russia imploded.. Attitudes were a real shock. People were still very secretive and gave no information about themselves. Everything in the novel rang true.”

“The story was gripping, beautifully crafted and well thought out. From the beginning there is a tension, suspense but none of it is overdone. The atmosphere didn’t give way to lurid fantasies. It’s a beautiful love story between Andrei and Anna. I was very moved by the book, I kept thinking of experiences I’d had, It was like being there again.”

“ Something about her style doesn’t do it for me. I appreciated the time and place, how people couldn’t interact, the arbitrariness of evrything, how the whole world could be turned on you. The characters are admirable, but it lacked a certain spark. The dialogue could seem slightly stilted.”

“It was very good, very worthy. Andrei is rather like a saint which is characteristic of Russian literature. “

“ I loved it, saw it as a sequel to The Siege. I’m terrified of Russia. I was there once in 2002. Russian faces are so bleak, they don’t show any emotion. I felt very threatened, very uncomfortable. I have no desire to go again.”

“Helen Dunmore is a fine writer. But I didn’t like the ending, that Andrei was coming back, that was too optimistic. But it was well develped, well crafted.”

“ I’ve been reading non fiction about Stalinist Russia. It seems a very accurate portrayal. I recently had to negotiate with the Russian government, the approach was noticably different from a European or American style. A Russian official whispered to me “ This is what Putin wants, what he wants, he gets.” Everyone is inhibited, can’t talk back to their government.:”

“This was one of the hardest books to read and finish, it felt so real and depressing. The constant betrayal of ideals, families having to denounce each other as the only way to survive, at least Volkov towards the end saves Andrei by ensuring he gets a ten year sentence rather than death or twenty years. But only ten years sentence is a source of relief, what a thought!”

“It takes a rare person to stand up for their ideals even in a western democratic system. Take the banks today, if a member of staff doesn’t do what a bank wants or whistleblows on corruption.”

“The Betrayal shows how easy it is to oppress a whole people. It felt like history being brought to life., it felt extremely real.”

“ As for the ending, I didn’t have a problem that Andrei was amongst those coming back. It also leaves the door open for a third novel to complete a trilogy!”

“There is a strong feminist theme too. Anna has had to sacrifice herself to look after her brother, has not been able to pursue a career she would have liked.”

“Russov was the arch manipulator, Andrei couldn’t see a way out. He is a straightforward, honest kind of guy. A target for someone like Russov.”

“Is it possible for us all to be monsters? Are we capable of being little Hitlers or Stalins if we are under pressure?”

“In Russsia your fate isn’t in your own hands, even now.”

“ Putin is all powerful and just bans whatever he wants. He banned a Harry Potter film because one of the characters was said to look like him! The long jail sentences of the Pussy rioters is another example.”

“Thank goodness a little bit of light came at the end – the death of Stalin - the birth of Anna’s baby – the release of many political prisoners - the hope for the future.”

Highly recommended -

A beautifully crafted, very moving and gripping novel about life in Stalinist Russia. The Betrayal prompted excellent discussions.

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