Fall of Giants (Century Trilogy, 1)

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Think about the ways the main characters’ lives intersected throughout the book. Were there any characters that didn’t meet over the entirety of the novel that you wished did? Who, and why?

As Grigori finishes his story, he cleans Katerina’s wounds and falls instantly in love with her. He tells her of the death of his mother, killed on Bloody Sunday in 1905 when the workers marched to the Winter Palace to plead to the tsar for redress of grievances. Discuss examples of the disparity between how women and men were treated during this era. Were women regarded better, or worse, than you imagined they’d be? How far have women come since the early 1900s? What inequalities between the sexes still persist today? Discuss examples of the disparity between how women and men were treated during this era. Were women regarded better, or worse, than you imagined they'd be? How far have women come since the early 1900s? What inequalities between the sexes still persist today?What role did the media in the freer countries like Britain and the United States play in the run–up to the First World War? Is that role substantially different today? Follett once again creates a world at once familiar and fantastic. . . . A guiltless pleasure, the book is impossible to put down. . . . Empires fall. Heroes rise. Love conquers. After going through a war with these characters, you’re left hoping that Follett gets moving with the next giant installment.”— Time Out New York This audiobook is worth every cent and every second. I would very happily recommend this book to family and friends.A masterful piece.

Yes, it will surprise many readers, but more importantly I think they will relish the courage and resourcefulness of women in first getting around these restrictions and then abolishing them. My rule is either the scene did happen, or it might have; either these words were used, or they might have been. And if I find some reason why the scene could not have taken place in real life, or why the words would not really have been said—if, for example, the character was in another country at the time—I leave it out. Is it significant that Fall of Giants begins with the stories of Billy and Ethel Williams? Would the novel have been different if other characters' stories opened the book, such as those of Grigori and Lev Peshkov, or Gus Dewar?

READERS GUIDE

From September to December 1914, Fitz works in France as an interpreter to help maintain the peace between the French and British members of the military. He learns that most of the government has fled Paris, leaving a man named Gallieni to defend it. Fitz is angry that the British are choosing to retreat instead of fighting, and he is introduced to French General Lourceau who convinces the British general to keep fighting. However, their advancements are slow and Gallieni uses taxis to move the French men to the front lines. While Britain is slow, the German advance is stopped and they fight until December 24th where the men call an unofficial truce and Walter asks Fitz to tell Maud he was thinking of her. When you first read about Billy Williams in chapter one, did you anticipate how his life would unfurl—for example, that he would end up in running for Parliament? What about other characters: Could you guess what some of them would end up doing or being at the book's end? Ethel gathers the widows together and convinces them to write a letter to the king, helping them with the wording. However, they receive no reply, and the villagers of Aberowen watch as the miners and their families are evicted forcibly. In most countries the hysterical patriotism and wildly inaccurate reporting of the press brought war closer. But, as you can see from what happens in Fall of Giants, media that is irresponsible but free is still better than media controlled and censored by the government.

Then, now, and at every period of history, the lesson is that throwing your weight around isn't always the smart thing to do. The characters and their extended families find their fortunes changing for the better and for the worse due to both their interactions with each other and the effects of the First World War. I have not heard John Lee's performance before, but his reading style is personable and clever. His interpretation of humour is simple and real, and his ability to hold your utter attention in dramatic moments is highly skilled. Brilliant performance... and I will be pleased to listen to any of his other readings.When you first read about Billy Williams in chapter one, did you anticipate how his life would unfurl—for example, that he would end up in running for Parliament? What about other characters: Could you guess what some of them would end up doing or being at the book’s end? It is June of 1916 and Billy Williams is going to war. For the last year he was in training with the other men of Aberowen, but now there is a need for more soldiers as there is to be a big push by the British army. Billy’s father makes a feeble attempt to make peace with his son, knowing that it is unlikely he will return to Aberowen.