Synopses & Reviews
Stewart Dubinsky knew his father had served in World War II. And he'd been told how David Dubin (as his father had Americanized the name that Stewart later reclaimed) had rescued Stewart's mother from the horror of the Balingen concentration camp. But when he discovers, after his father's death, a packet of wartime letters to a former fiancée, and learns of his father's court-martial and imprisonment, he is plunged into the mystery of his family's secret history and driven to uncover the truth about this enigmatic, distant man who'd always refused to talk about his war.
As he pieces together his father's past through military archives, letters, and, finally, notes from a memoir his father wrote while in prison, secretly preserved by the officer who defended him, Stewart starts to assemble a dramatic and baffling chain of events. He learns how Dubin, a JAG lawyer attached to Patton's Third Army and desperate for combat experience, got more than he bargained for when he was ordered to arrest Robert Martin, a wayward OSS officer who, despite his spectacular bravery with the French Resistance, appeared to be acting on orders other than his commanders'. In pursuit of Martin, Dubin and his sergeant are parachuted into Bastogne just as the Battle of the Bulge reaches its apex. Pressed into the leadership of a desperately depleted rifle company, the men are forced to abandon their quest for Martin and his fiery, maddeningly elusive comrade, Gita, as they fight for their lives through carnage and chaos the likes of which Dubin could never have imagined.
In reconstructing the terrible events and agonizing choices his father faced on the battlefield, in the courtroom, and in love, Stewart gains a closer understanding of his past, of his father's character, and of the brutal nature of war itself.
Review
"[A]s engrossing as any of Turow's legal thrillers. Without diminishing his page-turning narrative momentum, Turow extends his literary range." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"While Turow's fans might prefer the lively verbal skirmishes that suffuse his legal fare, the author's action sequences (like that white-knuckle free fall onto the battlefront) do plenty to quicken the pulse." Booklist
Review
"Ordinary Heroes works best through vivid, anecdotal descriptions....Even when expressed stiltedly...these memories have immediacy. The author's anguish about war is unmistakably real." Janet Maslin, The New York Times
Review
"[S]earing....An extraordinary, unforgettable novel, which Turow notes was inspired by his own father's military experiences. Highly recommended." Library Journal
Review
"Turow's seventh novel is immensely satisfying on all levels....A first-rate mystery is meant to keep you guessing, but the enigmas and sorrows at the heart of Ordinary Heroes do more: They keep you thinking and feeling." Newsday
Review
"Turow gave Presumed Innocent, his ice-cold masterpiece, one of the most shattering kickers in thriller history. While Ordinary Heroes is perfectly serviceable entertainment, he lacks that kind of control of this material or milieu. (Grade: B-)" Entertainment Weekly
Review
"I found it moving and exciting. The powerful inner core of the book defeated my criticisms. Ordinary Heroes is terrific reading..." Chicago Sun-Times
Review
"Turow spins an engrossing tale of intrigue, espionage, love and betrayal, loosely based on his father's accounts of the war....This is not one of Turow's traditional legal thrillers, but he lives up to his reputation as a spell-binding teller of tales." Charlotte Observer
Review
"Once past this bland conceit, this flawed yet moving story of love and war steadily builds momentum, at least until a startling revelation near the end renders the final pages gratuitously superfluous." The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
Review
"[A] complex, absorbing novel about a past in which heroes are often mistaken for villains, and nothing is what the protagonist thinks....Readers of Turow's thrillers will find plenty to pull them into this more ambitious narrative." Hartford Courant
Review
"Turow has written a superb historical novel that is as vivid and powerful as his previous books. It has rich characters, an authentic feel and enough twists and turns to keep you turning the page....[A] great book." St. Petersburg Times
Review
"This novel provides a showcase for Turow's storytelling skills: he juggles the narratives, shifting back and forth in time with assurance; he is alert as always to character; the plot moves." Joseph Kanon, The New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
Stewart Dubinsky knew his father had served in World War II. And he'd been told how David Dubin (as his father had Americanized the name that Stewart later reclaimed) had rescued Stewart's mother from the horror of the Balingen concentration camp. But when he discovers, after his father's death, a packet of wartime letters to a former fiancée, and learns of his father's court-martial and imprisonment, he is plunged into the mystery of his family's secret history and driven to uncover the truth about this enigmatic, distant man who'd always refused to talk about his war.
As he pieces together his father's past through military archives, letters, and, finally, notes from a memoir his father wrote while in prison, secretly preserved by the officer who defended him, Stewart starts to assemble a dramatic and baffling chain of events. He learns how Dubin, a JAG lawyer attached to Patton's Third Army and desperate for combat experience, got more than he bargained for when he was ordered to arrest Robert Martin, a wayward OSS officer who, despite his spectacular bravery with the French Resistance, appeared to be acting on orders other than his commanders'. In pursuit of Martin, Dubin and his sergeant are parachuted into Bastogne just as the Battle of the Bulge reaches its apex. Pressed into the leadership of a desperately depleted rifle company, the men are forced to abandon their quest for Martin and his fiery, maddeningly elusive comrade, Gita, as they fight for their lives through carnage and chaos the likes of which Dubin could never have imagined.
In reconstructing the terrible events and agonizing choices his father faced on the battlefield, in the courtroom, and in love, Stewart gains a closer understanding of his past, of his father's character, and of the brutal nature of war itself.
Synopsis
In reconstructing the terrible events and agonizing choices his father faced on the battlefield during World War II, in the courtroom, and in love, Stewart Dubinsky gains a closer understanding of his past, of his father's character, and of the brutal nature of war itself.
About the Author
Scott Turow is the author of worldwide bestselling novels including Presumed Innocent, Innocent, The Burden of Proof, Reversible Errors and Limitations. His works of nonfiction include One L, his journal from his first year at law school, and Ultimate Punishment, which he wrote after serving on the Illinois commission that investigated the administration of the death penalty and influenced Governor George Ryans unprecedented commutation of the sentences of 164 death row inmates on his last day in office. Ultimate Punishment won the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award. He lives outside Chicago, where he is partner in the firm of SNR Denton (formerly Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal).
Reading Group Guide
Questions for Discussion 1. Discuss the effect of the V-mails on the books opening pages. What was it like to read David Dubins eyewitness account through the “artifacts” that comprise much of the rest of the book? Do father and son have different perceptions of life in
Ordinary Heroes?
2. In chapter two, Dubin writes about his reasons for enlisting. What were his true motivations in going to war?
3. What are Dubins initial impressions of Staff Sergeant Bidwell? How does Biddys perception of racism compare to Dubins perception of it, both before and after Biddy makes his revelations about racial passing? What common ground do the two men share?
4. How did your impressions of Robert Martin shift throughout the novel? Does Brigadier General Teedle give an accurate description of him before Dubin meets him for the first time?
5. How would you characterize Stewarts meetings with Bear Leach? How would you have handled Stewarts requests if you had been in Justice Leachs position?
6. What did you make of Corporal Bonners comments about Teedles sexuality in chapter eight? What would be the result of similar rumors in todays U.S. military?
7. Is Gitas allure purely based on sex appeal? How do her attitudes toward men differ from her mothers?
8. In chapter ten, Gita reveals that her mother was killed for harboring Jews. How does Dubin respond to her after this scene? What does it take for him to finally trust her?
9. Chapter thirteen ends with Leachs recollection that Dubin feared his children would learn the truth about him. To what extent is it necessary to keep secrets from our descendants? To what extent is this harmful? Do you agree with the Talmuds aphorism, mentioned in the novels first chapter, that a father should draw his son close with one hand and push him away with the other?
10. How do the brutal December battles affect Dubin? How does he reconcile his roles as legal assistant and soldier after these scenes? What does he mean when he tells Grace he regrets being a “soldier in earnest,” in his letter to her at the end of chapter twenty-seven?
11. What did it take to transform Gita Lodz into Gilda/Gella Rosner? When did it become her dream to have an ordinary life?
12. Was it unpatriotic of Martin to try to keep not only the Soviets but also the United States from securing knowledge of Germanys weapons of mass destruction? Were Martins actions rational? Would you have let him escape?
13. What is your understanding of the relationship between Gita and Martin? What does war teach Dubin about love? Would he have had much chance of a good marriage with Grace?
14. How do Stewarts findings affect the dynamic of his family—his relationships with his sister and mother, and the memory of David Dubin?
15. Scott Turow writes that although Ordinary Heroes is completely a work of his imagination, the initial inspiration came from his father, who was a field surgeon in Europe during World War II. What legacies of war exist in your family? What stories of heroism and mystery are part of your family history?
16. What similarities and differences exist between Ordinary Heroes and Turows other novels? From Turows point of view, what are the makings of a hero?