Official Review: Code Name Lily by Julien Ayotte
Posted: 29 Apr 2019, 02:36
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Code Name Lily" by Julien Ayotte.]
4 out of 4 stars
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Allied bombing routes into Germany flew over several occupied countries. This, along with the diminishing number of allied fighters able to accompany these bombing runs, meant that countless numbers of planes (and consequently airmen) went down over Belgium during the course of WWII. The fact that Belgium was occupied by the Germans meant that if these airmen survived the barrage of bullets thrown at them during their descent, they still had to evade capture on the ground. One way for the Belgian population to rebel against their occupation was aiding these men in escaping Nazi capture. This meant sheltering/transporting them from Belgium and France, over the Pyrenees and into Spain. One woman, a part of this secretive Belgian resistance, was responsible for saving the lives of over 250 allied soldiers. In order to guard against discovery, code names were used, and the woman’s name was "Lily, just Lily, nothing more.”
Code Name Lily by Julien Ayotte is one of the most unique historical fiction novels I have ever read. On one hand, there is a (presumably) fictional tale about a man discovering for the first time that his father served in World War II as a tail gunner in a B-17 bomber. With this premise in mind, the book follows not only this man’s discovery (in a modern timeline) but also the story of the father’s experiences during the war after being shot down (evidently in the past). On the other hand, the book is altogether about the real-life heroes of the Belgian resistance that risked their freedom and their lives to shuttle allied soldiers out of occupied Belgium along the Comet Line. Many of these characters were real people whose actions resulted in countless lives being saved. By shifting perspectives, this book expertly tells the tale of those involved in these covert operations and opens the reader’s eyes to a part of World War II that they may be unaware existed.
As a lover of historical fiction, this book was right up my alley from the very first page. The intrigue that the author created through the discovery of previously unknown military service is palpitating. Ayotte increases the tension quickly and easily within the first few chapters of the book. As a WWII story, this book refreshingly capitalizes on a part of the war that hasn’t been overdone by the cinematic and even literary industry (I’m thinking of D-Day or battles or advancing along the Western front for example.) This allows the advantages of the historical fiction genre to come out in droves - teaching the reader something about the past. Finally, what I liked the best about this book is directly related to this previous point. Ayotte taught me some amazing things regarding this time period and about those trying to escape occupied Belgium that I never knew before. For example, those trying the shield Americans and Canadians from the prying eyes of the Gestapo had to watch extremely closely to the mannerisms that were used so as not to give away the fact that they weren’t European. Something as simple as switching the hand that uses the knife or the fork during the course of a meal (apparently something a European would never do) or shielding one’s lighter from the wind (a habit from lighting cigarettes on airfields with strong crosswinds) would be enough to give them away.
There were two minute things that bothered me about this book, however. First, the way that this book is put together (by trying to give each prominent character’s story one at a time), the timeline jumps around quite a bit. This can get a bit confusing to the reader if they aren’t paying close attention. The next thing, and what I disliked the most, was the repetition in the book. The father’s story is recounted to the reader many different times throughout the book. First in the form of a diary, next when talking about the diary, and even several times later during the perspectives of the character’s themselves. Although imperative to the novel, I’m certain that the author would have been able to find a way to present the storyline in an alternative way such that the blatant repetition wasn’t so apparent to the reader. There were a few editing issues that I came across, but these were extremely minor and didn't take away from the power inherent in this novel.
The story told in Code Name Lily is absolutely amazing, and its greatness is magnified by the fact that it actually happened. For informing the reader about these unsung heroes of WWII, for the compelling prose that Ayotte provides for the reader, and for the myriad of threads that are woven together to recount this tale, I easily bestow a perfect 4 out of 4 stars on this book. The timeline and repetition issues mentioned above were mere pet peeves of mine and by no means merited the loss of a star. For lovers of historical fiction, especially if you have a penchant for WWII novels, this is a must-read. If war stories aren’t your thing, or if those based on real-life events don’t do it for you, I wouldn’t recommend this one to you.
******
Code Name Lily
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords
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4 out of 4 stars
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Allied bombing routes into Germany flew over several occupied countries. This, along with the diminishing number of allied fighters able to accompany these bombing runs, meant that countless numbers of planes (and consequently airmen) went down over Belgium during the course of WWII. The fact that Belgium was occupied by the Germans meant that if these airmen survived the barrage of bullets thrown at them during their descent, they still had to evade capture on the ground. One way for the Belgian population to rebel against their occupation was aiding these men in escaping Nazi capture. This meant sheltering/transporting them from Belgium and France, over the Pyrenees and into Spain. One woman, a part of this secretive Belgian resistance, was responsible for saving the lives of over 250 allied soldiers. In order to guard against discovery, code names were used, and the woman’s name was "Lily, just Lily, nothing more.”
Code Name Lily by Julien Ayotte is one of the most unique historical fiction novels I have ever read. On one hand, there is a (presumably) fictional tale about a man discovering for the first time that his father served in World War II as a tail gunner in a B-17 bomber. With this premise in mind, the book follows not only this man’s discovery (in a modern timeline) but also the story of the father’s experiences during the war after being shot down (evidently in the past). On the other hand, the book is altogether about the real-life heroes of the Belgian resistance that risked their freedom and their lives to shuttle allied soldiers out of occupied Belgium along the Comet Line. Many of these characters were real people whose actions resulted in countless lives being saved. By shifting perspectives, this book expertly tells the tale of those involved in these covert operations and opens the reader’s eyes to a part of World War II that they may be unaware existed.
As a lover of historical fiction, this book was right up my alley from the very first page. The intrigue that the author created through the discovery of previously unknown military service is palpitating. Ayotte increases the tension quickly and easily within the first few chapters of the book. As a WWII story, this book refreshingly capitalizes on a part of the war that hasn’t been overdone by the cinematic and even literary industry (I’m thinking of D-Day or battles or advancing along the Western front for example.) This allows the advantages of the historical fiction genre to come out in droves - teaching the reader something about the past. Finally, what I liked the best about this book is directly related to this previous point. Ayotte taught me some amazing things regarding this time period and about those trying to escape occupied Belgium that I never knew before. For example, those trying the shield Americans and Canadians from the prying eyes of the Gestapo had to watch extremely closely to the mannerisms that were used so as not to give away the fact that they weren’t European. Something as simple as switching the hand that uses the knife or the fork during the course of a meal (apparently something a European would never do) or shielding one’s lighter from the wind (a habit from lighting cigarettes on airfields with strong crosswinds) would be enough to give them away.
There were two minute things that bothered me about this book, however. First, the way that this book is put together (by trying to give each prominent character’s story one at a time), the timeline jumps around quite a bit. This can get a bit confusing to the reader if they aren’t paying close attention. The next thing, and what I disliked the most, was the repetition in the book. The father’s story is recounted to the reader many different times throughout the book. First in the form of a diary, next when talking about the diary, and even several times later during the perspectives of the character’s themselves. Although imperative to the novel, I’m certain that the author would have been able to find a way to present the storyline in an alternative way such that the blatant repetition wasn’t so apparent to the reader. There were a few editing issues that I came across, but these were extremely minor and didn't take away from the power inherent in this novel.
The story told in Code Name Lily is absolutely amazing, and its greatness is magnified by the fact that it actually happened. For informing the reader about these unsung heroes of WWII, for the compelling prose that Ayotte provides for the reader, and for the myriad of threads that are woven together to recount this tale, I easily bestow a perfect 4 out of 4 stars on this book. The timeline and repetition issues mentioned above were mere pet peeves of mine and by no means merited the loss of a star. For lovers of historical fiction, especially if you have a penchant for WWII novels, this is a must-read. If war stories aren’t your thing, or if those based on real-life events don’t do it for you, I wouldn’t recommend this one to you.
******
Code Name Lily
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords
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