March - The Painted Bird

March - Alisa

Semiautobiographical novel by Jerzy Kosinski, published in 1965 and revised in 1976. The ordeals of the central character parallel Kosinski's own experiences during World War II. A dark-haired Polish child who is taken for either a Gypsy or a Jew loses his parents in the mayhem of war and wanders through the countryside at the mercy of the brutal, thickheaded peasants he meets in the villages. He learns how to stay alive at any cost, turning survival into a moral imperative. Full of graphic scenes depicting rape, torture, and bestiality, the novel portrays evil in all its manifestations and speaks of human isolation as inevitable.

Ashley A. - 5/10 - I’m completely torn because although I was extremely disturbed and had trouble believing all of the experiences, I really liked the point that Amy H made about the author desensitizing us to show how desensitized we all have become to the horrors of the world. This is the only reason I can see in why the author chose to write the book the way that he did.

Camille - 5/10 - I actually dreaded reading the book every day, but now that it’s over, I can see that it had some value, and it was definitely engaging and thought provoking (along with gag-reflex provoking).

Cameron - 5/10 - I feel that the author shows a type of anti-humanism by constantly comparing the horrors that occur in the animal kingdom with those that occur amongst human, rarely showing a preference for one over the other and, quite poignantly and literally, mingling the two. However, the constant atrocities, graphically detailed one after the other, not only made the story less genuine and heartfelt, but made it fit perfectly into the new genre of “torture porn” that exists cinematically today. I mostly feel bad for the fellow diners at the training table who overheard us discussing the book.

Amy H. - 5/10 - I debated with myself about whether Kosinski was writing about grotesque, violent things to make a point about humanity or if he was doing it just to be shocking and controversial. Regardless of the truth, the book did make me think about how awful people can be to each other. But for every one of our "animalistic" instincts, I think people have another uniquely human instinct for kindness and generosity. For whatever reason, Kosinski did not choose to show both sides of humanity in his book, and maybe it's more powerful because of it.

Lisa - 6.5/10 - No comment.

Still to comment: Ashley C., Alisa, Patrick