Winter of the World

The Century Trilogy, Book 2

By: Ken Follett

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 31 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

Picking up where Fall of Giants, the first novel in the extraordinary Century Trilogy, left off, Winter of the World follows its five interrelated families - American, German, Russian, English, and Welsh - through a time of enormous social, political, and economic turmoil, beginning with the rise of the Third Reich, through the great dramas of World War II, and into the beginning of the long Cold War.

Carla von Ulrich, born of German and English parents, finds her life engulfed by the Nazi tide until daring to commit a deed of great courage and heartbreak...

American brothers Woody and Chuck Dewar, each with a secret, take separate paths to momentous events, one in Washington, the other in the bloody jungles of the Pacific...

English student Lloyd Williams discovers in the crucible of the Spanish Civil War that he must fight communism just as hard as fascism...

Daisy Peshkov, a driven social climber, cares only for popularity and the fast set until war transforms her life, while her cousin Volodya carves out a position in Soviet intelligence that will affect not only this war but also the war to come.

©2012 Ken Follett (P)2012 Penguin Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Gripping....powerful." (The New York Times)

"[Follett] is so good at plotting a story, even one that takes on such a complex topic such as the World War II era. That's what makes Winter of the World so hard to put down. You want to know what happens next." (The Associated Press)

"A consistently compelling portrait of a world in crisis." (The Washington Post)

AMAZING...simply Magnificent!!

I love everything Ken Follett has ever written, but this book was Such a comprehensive study on the lives of those who lived through one of the most tragic periods of our world's history..WW II. It told the story from every aspect and prospective so that the reader could better understand the motivating forces behind each side. Truly Unique and engaging. The narrator did an outstanding job and I was fully engaged throughout the book. This should be on the list of required reading in all schools so that students can learn the history without it being dry & boring, or unduly influenced by either the victor or the defeated nations. Thank you for a truly magnificent book! One of the Best I have Ever read!

Shallow the Meat and Spit out Bones.

Great story overall.
Creative license is fine especially from the point of view the of characters. Sadly however I found the revisionist history reflecting the modern liberal narrative taking me out of story over and over.
Just like biting down on a bone in an otherwise well prepared meal.

Review of history

This book reviewed history in a very meaningful way by telling personal stories of people.

Compelling! 🅰️

Well-written and excellently performed! Lots of characters to track. A little too complicated at times but still, a very enjoyable read.

Excellent story - Captivating!

This is the second of a series and I did struggle a bit with trying to keep all the characters straight especially as to how they related to others.

The narrator was good except when it came to names. It sounded to me like his voice would drop when he said names and I would have to "rewind" and listen to it again to see who was speaking.

History

A great way learn the history of WW II. I have read the first book and now his second one. My parents who were alive during WWII never talked about it or their experiences. I find that strange!

Excellent narration

Ken writes great stories. I enjoy the series and how they fit together. John Lee is an excellent narrator. I would listen to anything he read.

Wow, this is a great book

I loved everything about this audio book. Starting with Ken Follette's wonderful story. The detail on the book is what makes it light up for me.

Then there is the reading of the book. This reader made the numerous come alive. Cheers to John Lee.

It is a very long book but it was not long enough in my view.

Great book but DON'T BUY - AUDIBLE VERSION SKIPS

Any additional comments?

This is a great book and great narration. However, the Audible version skips about halfway through. I contacted Audible and was told it will take two weeks or even longer to fix (a/o 10/10/12). Either wait or buy somewhere else - unless you don't mind that a section of the audiobook is missing.

If You're a Ken Follett Fan It's a Must Read

I enjoyed this book a lot its very typical of all of Ken Follett books he is an epic story teller. I think I enjoyed Fall of Giants more though. Having been 2 years since that book came out it would have been nice just to have a clearer understanding of the characters genealogy. However IF you have not read Fall of Giants this book is still one you can pick up and enjoy without having read the previous book. I don't think the book focused enough on the holocaust but I think that is a point not many Germans from my understanding knew what was going on at that time.