I almost scared myself right out of reading this one. All of the reviews either loved it or hated. There wasn't one that expressed the slightest mediocrity. Despite the largely varied point of views on it there was one common thread in all of the reviewers' messages and that was that this book should only be read by someone with a strong stomach, that it's horrifying in its graphic re-telling of WWII atrocities.With that in mind I approached this book cautiously. It's true; what is contained in this book is grossly disturbing; however, I didn't find it any more disturbing or unsettling than any of the true accounts of WWII victims/survivors I have read previously. I was much more acutely affected by the things I saw in my college textbooks than what I read here. I found it redundant in its constant tales of horrific acts of violence and perversion and tragically missing any kind of story line or thread to help the reader even desire to continue through this overburdened collection of violent anecdotes. A waste of time, money, and international publishing rights- I couldn't possibly care less about the controversy of this work. If it is autobiographical- than I'm sorry that happened- though I'm strongly inclined to believe it is NOT autobiographical, due to research I've conducted on my own. If it was written by someone other than Kosinski- kudos to the true author for having enough sense not to put his or her name on it.
You will find an official plot line description at:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18452.The_Painted_Bird
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