The Last Green Valley

“We’re going to a beautiful green valley surrounded by mountains and forests. And snow up high on the peaks. And below, there will be a winding river and fields of grain for bread, and gardens with vegetables to feed us, and Papa will build us a house where we’ll all live together forever and ever, and we’ll never be apart.”

In addition to her faith, Adeline relies on her dream of the green valley to sustain her during the most difficult parts of her family’s journey west. While their surroundings in Ukraine are mostly flat farmland, Adeline dreams of living in a green valley like the one she saw in Mrs. Kantor’s book. Her dream is simple, but it is informed by the suffering, such as starvation, that she experienced growing up under Stalin’s rule.

“Lydia had never stopped believing Karl would return. When they were finally thrown out of their ancestral home in 1930, she had insisted on writing a letter to her husband, telling him where they had gone and why.”

When Adeline was young, her father, Karl, was sent to a Siberian prison camp; her mother, Lydia, never gave up hope that Karl would return. Lydia’s situation represents the fate of many Volksdeutsche women who lost their husbands to Stalin’s regime or World War II. Furthermore, Lydia’s refusal to give up hope foreshadows Adeline’s struggles to maintain hope when Emil is taken by the Soviets.

“He knew he was at the mercy of the Nazi escorts, with zero say in the direction of his near future. But it was best for his family. Of that he had no doubt. If they’d stayed behind, waited for the Russians, his family would have been torn apart.”

This quote helps characterize Emil, as it demonstrates his fierce devotion to his family. Emil prefers to be in charge of his life and resents when he must abide by someone else’s rules. Despite his frustrations, Emil is willing to do whatever it takes to save his family from Stalin’s government, even if that means temporarily following the Nazis’ orders.

“The years in the mines of Siberia had done something to Johann, broken him somehow, robbed him of his inner fire. In the years after his return, he’d often be found staring off into the middle distance, transported to some dark past he rarely spoke of.”

Though Johann does not share much about his time in Siberia, he remains haunted by the horrors he lived through. Just as Lydia’s experience is a foreshadowing of Adeline’s, Johann’s broken spirit offers a possibility of what might happen to Emil when he is taken to Poltava prison camp. Johann’s fate reveals that the struggles of the men who are taken to the prison camps do not end when they return home.

“As a boy, he’d learned that the key to survival under Communism was to be silent, do your job, and not aspire to leadership of any kind. Within three months of his parents leaving him to his own wits, he had learned that people who spoke up, people who tried to do things better or tried to teach others a better way, tended to vanish or to die young.”

Emil’s experience growing up in the Soviet Union provides important context as to why the Martels leave Ukraine with the Nazis. Under Stalin’s rule, people face a constant threat of punishment or death for perceived wrongdoings against the state. While Emil morally opposes the Nazi party’s ideals, he aligns with what he views as the lesser of two evils to help his family.

“I’m just saying a man has got to look out for himself and what’s his, Adeline. If some invisible God has a hand, I’m all for it. But I’ve learned from experience not to expect it, and neither should you, and neither should the boys.”

In addition to ensuring their survival, Emil and Adeline must protect their young sons, Walt and Will, as they try to escape to the West. Emil and Adeline often disagree on how to raise their children amid the war. While Adeline reminds the boys that God will protect them, Emil urges her to be realistic with the boys so that they are prepared for future hardships.

“We did a good thing, a noble thing, wiping the earth free of those lice-ridden kikes. […] Could have become an epidemic. Could have killed everyone for hundreds of kilometers—German, Russian, Ukrainian, everyone—if they didn’t keep it contained.”

During the trek out of Ukraine, Emil encounters Nikolas, another Volksdeutsche man traveling with the refugee caravan. Nikolas openly brags about joining the Selbstschutz and murdering hundreds of Jewish people. This quote from Nikolas demonstrates how members of the Nazi party justified the extreme violence perpetrated against Jewish people.

“Swallowing his pride, telling himself to do whatever it took to be rid of this man, Emil recited the oath for the second time in his life and for the second time at Haussmann’s command.”

When Major Haussmann discovers that Emil is not a member of the Selbstschutz, he forces Emil to pledge his loyalty to Hitler. This moment demonstrates one of the many times when characters are forced to compromise their morals to ensure their family’s survival. Emil despises the Nazis, but he takes the oath to protect himself and his family.

“He wanted to close his eyes, wanted to say, Anything but that. Instead, Emil remembered that a man can only rely on himself in times of challenge, and he steeled himself.”

The refugee caravan consistently faces death from exposure and disease; in the quote above, Emil is called on to help a woman bury her father. Such moments provide further insight into Emil’s character and his relationship to faith. Given his disbelief in God, Emil must remind himself that he has to rely on his willpower to survive.

“‘What do we bring?’ she asked. ‘How much can we carry? What did we bring all this so far for, anyway?’ She flung herself into his arms and sobbed. ‘They want us down to nothing, Emil, people with no pasts!’”

The journey that the Volksdeutsche refugees undertake reveals how the cruelty of war is not limited to the battlefield. When the refugees reach the train that will take them to Poland, they are forced to leave most of their possessions behind. Adeline’s grief over leaving many of their items reinforces the extreme suffering that civilians and refugees are subject to during war.

“He went to Rese’s side, however, confirming his own disbelief in God or in any higher force. No decent spirit would allow such a tragic thing to happen to a wild but innocent creature like his sister.”

Faith is a central theme of the novel; many of the characters rely on their faith to make sense of tragic situations. However, Emil struggles with faith and does not believe in God at the start of the novel. Senseless tragedies such as Rese’s legs being cut off by the train reinforce Emil’s belief that there is no God.

“Emil shook off his grogginess and was about to tell his younger son not to believe in such nonsense, that whatever color the land around their new home turned out to be, there was no doubt that it would be harsh and cruel and laced with suffering at some level.”

In addressing The Cruelty of War, the novel focuses on how children such as Walt and Will Martel experience and make sense of their lives. While Adeline tries to instill a sense of faith and optimism in her sons, Emil argues that they need to give the boys a realistic understanding of life. In an uncharacteristic moment, Emil refrains from arguing with his young son’s daydreaming about their future.

“The refugees shouted it back even louder. Emil noticed again that by the eighth time, the entire camp was bellowing ‘Heil Hitler!’ as one monstrous voice.”

After an arduous trek out of Ukraine, the Volksdeutsche refugees are overwhelmed by the clean living quarters and quality of food in the refugee camp. Their participation in the Nazi salute reveals how regular people can be made complicit in wrongdoing when their survival is at stake. Even though Emil and Adeline are morally opposed to the Nazi Party’s values, they participate in the salute.

“Emil kept walking into the gloaming, smelling the good clean scent of the wind after the rain, and hearing more shots and then shouts and cries that with every step closer became the voices of innocence screaming for mercy.”

Emil’s flashbacks to his encounter with Major Haussmann in Dubossary reveal the magnitude of the violence perpetrated against Jewish people by the Nazi Party. The violence in Dubossary is heightened for Emil by the contradictions presented in his surroundings. The scent of fresh rain is undercut by the cries of Jewish people facing imminent death.

“The men smelled unnaturally foul to Emil, as if their hearts and souls had been so corrupted by mass murder that the invisible, evil pus of it was seeping out of their skin and pouring from their lungs. When one of them glanced their way, Emil saw the deadest eyes he’d ever seen in a living man.”

On the night that Emil encountered Major Haussmann in Dubossary, he witnessed firsthand Nazi soldiers murdering hundreds of Jewish people. The visceral imagery of this scene underscores how a person’s humanity can be stripped away when they willingly perpetrate this level of violence. In refusing to murder Jewish people, Emil resisted becoming as dehumanized as the Nazi soldiers.

“Walking away, Adeline felt like that fallen leaf that had caught her attention the day the trek began: dried and curled brown, blown by the wind on some strange, haphazard journey that she now saw as futile and meaningless.”

Though Adeline strives to maintain belief in God, her experience during World War II tests her faith. At one of their lowest points, the Martels are near starvation and struggling to acquire food. Adeline reflects on the hopelessness of their situation, feeling a complete lack of control over their circumstances.

“There was such compelling anger and defeat in Karoline’s eyes, Adeline almost succumbed to the rancor that thrived in her mother-in-law’s core.”

Adeline and Karoline’s personalities are contrasted several. After Emil has been taken away by Polish militiamen, Adeline understands her mother-in-law’s bitterness. Facing life without Emil, Adeline understands how a person can give in to bitterness and defeat.

“Maybe you will see him walking through the village someday. But you should not dwell too much on that kind of dream. That kind of dream, Adeline, can break your heart.”

When Emil is taken away to Poltava prison camp, Adeline must decide how to approach the possibility of life without him. She can maintain faith like her mother, or she can give up hope like her mother-in-law. Greta Schmidt offers Adeline another perspective; while she does not completely reject the idea of hope, she cautions Adeline to not let that hope dominate her life.

“But then again, she rationalized as she pulled the blanket over her and plumped the pillow, why should she pray when she wasn’t getting answers anymore?”

Adeline’s faith begins to waver the longer she is separated from Emil. This quote reflects Adeline’s attitude at one of her lowest points during their separation. In contrast to her earlier perspective, Adeline begins to resemble Emil as she starts to believe that God is not hearing her prayers.

“He smiled. ‘See? You have a hero’s heart, but you are a man. You have limits. Even you can’t go alone, can’t do everything by yourself.’”

When they are reunited in Poltava, Corporal Gheorghe guides Emil through a fundamental shift in his relationship with God. In addition to demonstrating that God heard Emil’s prayer that night in Dubossary, Corporal Gheorghe reinforces that even the best people cannot rely only on themselves. This perspective helps Emil accept his circumstances and inspires him to escape Poltava.

“Her longing for Emil now felt sewn through her, like strings on a marionette she’d once seen. She wanted to stop and pray for her husband’s safe return but did not know if she had the strength.”

The longer Adeline and Emil are separated, the more Adeline feels that she does not have control over her circumstances. The simile of marionette strings demonstrates Adeline’s sense that she is controlled by her grief. Such moments reinforce how one’s faith can wane when confronted with seemingly hopeless situations.

“Realizing he was going to catch her at this pace, Adeline surged with an emotional energy that she’d never felt before and never would again, a mother determined to save her children, a wife desperate to hold her husband again, a woman fueled by fear, by love, and by prayer.”

Emil is open to taking risks, while Adeline expresses hesitance at times. Despite this, Adeline demonstrates courage multiple times, culminating in her decision to sneak across the border between East and West Germany. Ultimately, Adeline has the courage to take major risks.

“He’d survived the worst that life could throw at him, and those trials and his time with Corporal Gheorghe had changed him, made him stronger and humbler and more aware of the power of dreams and the magic of life all around him. He appreciated every sunrise and every sunset and was grateful to the Almighty for every gift he was given in between.”

After years of not believing in God, Emil experiences a transformation in his faith. This quote reinforces how his perspective has shifted regarding both his past and future. While Emil used to dwell on the injustices he experienced, he now focuses on the positives of each situation he encounters.