Ordinary Heroes

A Novel

By: Scott Turow

Narrated by: Edward Herrmann

Length: 13 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Stewart Dubinsky knew his father had served in World War II. And he'd been told how David Dubin (as his father had Americanized the name that Stewart later reclaimed) had rescued Stewart's mother from the horror of the Balingen concentration camp. But when he discovers, after his father's death, a packet of wartime letters to a former fiancée, and learns of his father's court-martial and imprisonment, he is plunged into the mystery of his family's secret history and driven to uncover the truth about this enigmatic, distant man who'd always refused to talk about his war.

As he pieces together his father's past through military archives, letters, and, finally, notes from a memoir his father wrote while in prison, secretly preserved by the officer who defended him, Stewart starts to assemble a dramatic and baffling chain of events. He learns how Dubin, a JAG lawyer attached to Patton's Third Army and desperate for combat experience, got more than he bargained for when he was ordered to arrest Robert Martin, a wayward OSS officer who, despite his spectacular bravery with the French Resistance, appeared to be acting on orders other than his commanders'. In pursuit of Martin, Dubin and his sergeant are parachuted into Bastogne just as the Battle of the Bulge reaches its apex. Pressed into the leadership of a desperately depleted rifle company, the men are forced to abandon their quest for Martin and his fiery, maddeningly elusive comrade, Gita, as they fight for their lives through carnage and chaos, the likes of which Dubin could never have imagined.

In reconstructing the terrible events and agonizing choices his father faced on the battlefield, in the courtroom, and in love, Stewart gains a closer understanding of his past, of his father's character, and of the brutal nature of war itself.

©2005 Scott Turow (P)2005 Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"[Turow has] set new standards for the genre, most notably in the depth and subtlety of his characterizations...the kind of reading pleasure that only the best novelists, genre or otherwise, can provide." (The New York Times)
"Turow makes the leap from courtroom to battlefield effortlessly." (Publishers Weekly)
"No one writes better mystery suspense novels than Scott Turow." (Los Angeles Times)
"Scott Turow not only knows what his readers want, he delivers just about perfectly...Turow is the closest we have to a Balzac of the fin de siecle professional class." (Chicago Tribune)

Great book!

I’ve always appreciated his books but this one is just about my favorite. One of the best books I’ve read on WWII.

A True Winner

I almost didn't listen to this book. Something about the way it started made me think I had just made a bad choice. I couldn't have been more wrong and am so glad I returned to listen. First, the book provides a wonderful way to learn about WWII and the Battle of the Bulge in whih I had always been interested since I had an uncle captured in that battle. Somehow, beyond my college course in World History, I had never made it back to really read and understand that pivotal battle. This book provides a clear view of the horrors of that battle and that war woven into an excellent account of the historical facts of the Allies' travail after Normandy. What is so neat is that this is all set in the entertaining and captivating intrigue of a mystery and love story, both of which will keep you guessing to the last page. The author really outdid himself on this one providing a banquet for the reader that includes insights into complex human relationships, social inequality, issues of honor and integrity, historical events, mystery, sacrifice for true love and a world that would be forever changed by the second global war. Rich and resounding, it is a must read for practically everyone.

Enjoyed it

I could write a long descriptive accolade about this book because I really liked it a lot. I was worried that I would tire of a long 13-hour reading but I was duly surprised. The narration was marvelous with just the right voice inflections to hold me to the story. The story line was artfully written and kept it my interest through to its end. I highly recommend the book.

Read this book

This is a good one, characters strong, wonderfull use of history,

World War II revisited

This is a very poignant story the war revisited -- sometimes grim and gruesome and sometimes a story of exquisite love.

Great book, excellent reader.

I really enjoyed reading (listen?) this book. I like when the author presents the story as a reflection. This case a son discovering his ordinary father was an extordinary soldier. I also enjoy how throughout the story the main character expresses his thoughts and feelings, the metaphors "as my emotions tumbled down the staircase, when I came to rest at the bottom, although bruised, I was all right". Something like that. It is high ground for an author to intertwine historical facts into the fiction. Not only entertaining but learning by experiencing. Bottom line it was real good, and read well, hated for it to end. If you read this and like it, try Killer Angels, setting Gettysburg Civil War. If you like how the author presents the story through the son, try The Way to Bright Star. I'm looking forward to another Scott Turow book, and check out other books read by Edward Hermann,( is this guy the actor that was in Overboard, sounds like him).

Superb

For every reader whose father or grandfather participated in this darkest winter of humankind, this story and performance will be almost too close to the heart to bear. And yet it liberates thoughts and feelings that are otherwise unavailable in ordinary life. Thoughts and feelings that push you to a more incisive view of the relationship that can happen between people who are thrown together against pure evil. And how “pure” evil can evolve into pure inhumanity.

One of Turow's top novels!

This is a great read/listen and I enjoyed it enough to listen to it again at some point in the future.
It is not one of Turow's best, but very close. He is a gifted story teller and all his books I've read get 5 stars.
The narrator was excellent. I've listened to other books by the same narrator and always enjoyed being able to follow the storyline with ease and to get the nuance and mood of what the author is telling the readers.
Overall this book gets 5 stars in all categories.

Didn't want it to end!

So moving! Loved this novel. The characters were so well thought out. Not just another WWII story. Will be staying with me a long time. It is a testament to the human spirit. You will not be disappointed.

Excellent portrayal of WWII

When I first started reading this book, I had to stop and check the author to verify that he only wrote fiction. This book was that believable.