This was a great read and an educational experience as well.

The narrator, John Lee does a superb job always

I’ll gladly read this book again when I have another 32 hours to devote to it. You don't want to miss any of the story and characters. I will recommend it to my book club.

I have read all of Ken Follett’s latest books (Pillars of the Earth, World Without End and Fall of Giants) and they are all epic, educational and wonderful. I can't think of anyone else who writes on this scale and keeps you totally immersed and totally entertained. I was a history major in college, yet I have learned so much with each of these reading experiences. Winter of the World covers pretty much the expanse of time I have been alive through WWII, and I still discovered things I didn’t know.

The depiction of multiple atrocities committed by soldiers and fellow citizens in the guise of love of country were chilling. It makes the point that it can happen anywhere, and we can never take our freedom and liberties for granted. I especially enjoyed the dialogue Valodja and Zoya had while discussing the Sears Catalog he brought back from America.

I really missed the characters in this story at book's end. Follett makes you care about them.

Character development and the pace of the story

A wonderful voice

Yes

Man's inhumanity to man. Yet the character's ability to maintain a sense of empathy amongst the cruelty.

Always enjoy John Lee. His voicing is seamless to the point of invisibility to the telling.

Yes. I will listen to Fall of Giants and Winter of the World before the final book of the trilogy comes out.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was as good as Fall of Giants. That seems not to be the norm. Was everything accurate? I'm not a scholar, so I don't know, but it was a terrific read. John Lee's narration was splendid.

I love the development of all of Follett's characters. He takes the reader back in time and gives an unbiased look at what it would be like to live through WWII. As the reader you the story is brought to life through the characters' experiences.

This is a wonderful book about WWII that is objective and not biased. It really gives the reader the perspective of what it means to be at war, what leads to it for every country involved, without having the story being navigated with a political agenda. Also Follett provides the human experience of what it is to live through the war on different continents.

Absolutely, especially those who are into history!

Unbroken, another History lesson, well told.

With all of the numerous generations, nationalities, multiple families, historical events that intertwined them all, it would be difficult to pick one character out of so many excellent ones.

Appropriately named, and if I had time to search my mind for a better one, I doubt I would succeed.

Just an excellent choice.

This was very informative and interesting but very gory in the torture details and other horrifying acts of WWII

Pillars of the Earth

Yes, similar

Daisy.. she was an American heiress who was outspoken and fluid.

I skipped some of the worst excesses of the Gestapo, and then went back and listened bit by bit. Unbelieveable! But I think it actually is more prevelant than we think even now and that is the scariest part!

The audio is better for me because the narrator brings to life all of the characters that would otherwise be mute through reading.

Carla would be my choice for favorite character because of her willingness to put everyone before her own needs.

A personality to all of the characters

John Lee's impeccable linguistic transitions.

Lloyd won my heart early on, with his youthful enthusiasm for political idealism and his undying pursuit of what he believed in, in spite of the collapse of everything he knew of the world he lived in, across borders and over time.

Carla's ability to know intuitively what a rape would have done to Rachael, and yet willingly take that personal nightmare on herself, physically and emotionally, made her the hero she proved to be in so many ways, throughout the impoverishment of family and neighbors, and degradation of homeland.

Forget your childhood recollections and your history lessons. Here's the fluid, seamless unfolding of events that molded the world as we know it today.

We all have favorites books, for whatever reason, but here is a book that is justified in being chosen as an all time favorite. Ken Follett had been a lifelong favorite author for one of his earlier works, but this is in a league of its own. It was an amazing research undertaking, and a piece worthy of being called a masterpiece in areas of history, sociology, culture, economy, warfare and knowledge of the human spirit.

I listened to Fall of Giants and was captivated. I love Follett's historical fiction and Winter of the World did not disappoint. As he did with Giants, Follett does an amazing job of researching the events and incorporating them so seamlessly into the storyline. Yes, it's a bit of a stretch to believe that these few characters were so involved in every single important event but one must put aside those misgivings and allow the story to happen. He does not shy away from controversial issues and tells it like it is; no revisionist history here. It's amazing that I found myself feeling bad for many of the Germans. WWII was a brutal war from any angle and this book highlights the atrocities without being too grotesque.

John Lee continues to be my all time favorite narrator. Not much can be said about him since he's so amazing. I could listen to him read an instruction manual in Latin and be completely satisfied!

Overall, if you have read and enjoyed Giants, you definitely need to read Winter.