Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad

Published by Candlewick, 2017, softcover, illustrated, index, 456 pages, condition: as new.

This ambitious and gripping work is narrative nonfiction at its best. . . . The book has all the intrigue of a spy thriller. . . . A must-have title with broad crossover appeal.  School Library Journal (starred review)

In September 1941, Adolf Hitlers Wehrmacht surrounded Leningrad in what was to become one of the longest and most destructive sieges in Western historyalmost three years of bombardment and starvation. Trapped between the Nazi invading force and the Soviet government itself was composer Dmitri Shostakovich, writing a symphony to rouse, rally, eulogize, and commemorate his fellow citizens: the Leningrad Symphony. This is the true story of a city under siege, the triumph of bravery and defiance in the face of terrifying odds. It is also a look at the powerand layered meaningof music in beleaguered lives. Symphony for the City of the Dead is a masterwork thrillingly told and impeccably researched by National Book Awardwinning author M. T. Anderson.