Thursday, April 30, 2009

About City of Thieves


The Featured Book of the Month for May is City of Thieves by David Benioff.

Set during the Siege of Leningrad in the winter of 1941, City of Thieves follows the story of Lev Beniov, a seventeen-year old Russian boy whose life changes forever when, driven by desperation, he was caught looting the body of a German paratrooper in the street. Lev is arrested and thrown in a jail cell with Kolya, a young army deserter, and together they wait to face certain death in front of the firing squad.

However, Lev and Kolya are granted a reprieve when an NKVD colonel needs a favor. The colonel’s daughter is getting married in a week and his wife has her heart set on having a wedding cake. The colonel is sure that the young thief and deserter will be able to find the missing ingredient - a dozen eggs. If they succeed, they will win their freedom. If they fail, they will be left to die.

Lev and Kolya set out on the journey to find eggs in a city where the citizens have resorted to cannibalism and eating “library candy”, made of melted glue from book bindings. City of Thieves is the story of their desperate quest, where they are in constant danger from the Germans, their own countrymen and the harsh Russian winter, and it’s also the story of the friendship that Lev and Kolya form along the way. Do they find the eggs and make it back in time for the wedding? Check City of Thieves out at your local branch to find out!

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