rating

A Time of Gifts

by: ​Patrick Leigh Fermor

Fermor wrote this book many decades after the his trek across Europe on foot. Assisted by his journal, his recollection of the details is excellent . The book is artfully written as he describes the landscape as if the surroundings are in motion and he is a stationary commentator. His crafting of the English language is exquisitely beautiful.  I love his stories and depictions of the folk he meets along the way. The year is 1933 and Nazi Germany hangs over Europe like the distant rumble of a coming storm. It is an enlightening depiction of the mood of the continent at the dawn of the impending tragedy. 

Fermor's long winded tributaries from the story bored me senseless. He waxes on about architecture, history and art,  and I found myself skipping or at best skimming over them. It is especially tedious when he is clearly no authority on these subjects and talks through a hole in his head.  Which is why I give this book  just 3 stars.  However, I have the 2nd part in the trilogy and intend to read it to see how the journey evolves as he plods through Hungary in "Between Woods and Water"