Anderson, M.T. Symphony for the City of the Dead.

Anderson, M.T.    Symphony for the City of the Dead. Candlewick Press   2017  456p. $14.99  Paperback  ISBN 978-0-7636-9100-4     hs  Historical fiction  VG-BN 

This narrative begins with a graphic description of the tumultuous world into which Dmitri Shostakovich was born in 1906. It continues throughout his life and describes his development as an artist. In his beloved Leningrad he experienced horrific events as desperate citizens struggled to survive. It was amongst the invading Nazi forces into the Soviet Union that Dmitri composed his symphony to honor, awaken, rally, and commemorate the people of Leningrad.

This well-researched book is very informative. Descriptions are horrific and graphic, but accurately describe the times. It is well written and honors Shostakovich in an admirable manner. Many photographs are included throughout the text, adding life to the narrative, and the captions provide additional information. The book concludes with extensive source notes, a bibliography, and an index.

This book is recommended for any high-school library.

Summary: Narrative of how Dmitri Shostakovich composed his symphony to honor, rouse, rally and commemorate the people of his city of Leningrad amid the invading Nazi force in 1943-1944.     

Shostakovich, Dmitri-Fiction                                --Virginia McGarvey

Anderson, M.T. Symphony for the City of the Dead.

Anderson, M.T.  Symphony for the City of the Dead.    Candlewick Press  2015  456p  $25.99  ISBN 978-0-7636-6818-1      hs/adult    Nonfiction  E-BN 

“Gradually, like the emigration of an insidious, phantom population, Leningrad belonged more to the dead than to the living.  The dead watched over streets and sat in snow-swamped buses.  Whole apartment buildings were tenanted by them, where in broken rooms, dead families sat waiting at tables.  Their dominion spread room by room, like lights going out in the evening.” 

The life of enigmatic composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who wrote the titular symphony for Leningrad – “The City of the Dead” -- is set against the history of Russia as events unfold starting with Bloody Sunday in 1905 through the Siege of Leningrad in World War II.  Comprehensive in depth and breadth of coverage, author M. T. Anderson exhaustively explores the impact that events had on the life and creative process of the composer, and the way he immortalized these events through his complicated compositions, which served as detailed evocative messages for those with the skills and musical savvy to decode them.

Horrific descriptions of Stalin’s purges, the deprivations suffered by the citizens of Leningrad, and man’s inhumanity to man are offset by lyrical descriptions illuminating the intricacies of Shostakovich’s musical legacy.  M. T. Anderson’s attention to detail, combined with the significant length of the text, may overwhelm some readers, but those who persist will be haunted by the vivid history and fascinating anecdotes long after finishing the book.  The material is well-researched, and both the historical and political aspects of events are presented objectively.  This is an important addition to history collections in academic and public libraries.      

Summary: Biography of Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich, combined with an in-depth examination of significant historical events that unfolded during his lifetime and influenced his creative process.

Russian Revolution, Dmitri Shostakovich               --Hilary Welliver

Anderson, M.T. Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Seige of Leningrad.

Anderson, M.T.  Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Seige of Leningrad.  Candlewick Press  2015  456p  $25.99  ISBN 978-0-7636-6818-1  hs  Nonfiction  E-BN 

This is nonfiction at its best.  The narrative of this book shows how nonfiction can read like a story, something that very much appealed to this reader.  The history, which is documented academically, addresses one of the direst moments in Russian history.  Families were forced to do whatever they could just to survive, burning furniture and books to stay warm, and too often resorting to eating pets when no other food was available.  During this time, composer Dmitri Shostakovich wrote one of his most critically acclaimed symphonies, the Seventh, which he dedicated to the city of Leningrad and its citizens.  What the author has done with this incredibly well-written title is to tie in the artistic genius of Shostakovich’s reflections of the seige to the events as they occurred. Anderson does this with language that is almost conversational, and thus very easily read and understood.  From Shostakovich’s childhood during the Russian Revolution and its marching songs to the time of Stalin and Hitler, the history of this tragic time is documented and narrated in a manner that YA readers will enjoy, especially those with an interest in World War II.  

Summary: The Seige of Leningrad, when Hitler’s forces surrounded the city of Leningrad, lasted for an incredibly long three years.  During this time, composer Dmitri Shostakovich wrote the Leningrad Symphony, a piece that would not only memorialize this time, but serve as a rallying cry for the citizens of Leningrad.  

World War, 1939-1945-Russia, Dmitri Shostakovich            --Lynn Fisher