“Fall of Giants” by Ken Follett – The Turn of the Century Revisited

When we think of times past, how people must have lived, interacted and worked, let’s admit it, most of us have a very limited and romanticized notion about that. We know bits and pieces from what we read in books and saw in movies, and from those pieces we try and put together the big picture as best we can. 

Not to say Ken Follett has lived at the beginning of the twentieth century, but he seems to be a man who has done his research and knows more than most about that time period… after all, he wrote an entire trilogy following the story of five families in that world, with the first book of it being Fall of Giants.

We are introduced to people of all classes and walks of life, including a boy working in the mines, a law student who takes up work in the White House alongside Woodrow Wilson, a housekeeper who makes a daring move above her station, Lady Maud Fitzherbert who falls in love with a German spy, and two Russian orphans whose plans for immigration to America go awry, on account of that whole World War I thing happening. 

While I’m not the biggest of fans of that time period (beginning of the 20th century), I nevertheless found this book to be quite revelatory and eye-opening. Ken doesn’t pull back on his punches and shows us the majestic side of that time, as well as the bloody, dirty, and violent world that lied beneath. 

Follett takes special care to make us understand how society worked in those days; the importance of social classes, the submission of those working at lesser stations, the value of respect towards one another, what was considered to be morally right and wrong... etc... etc...

This is done not only to immerse us in the world (which it does quite well), but also to justify the thoughts and actions of the characters. All in all, the story itself and the characters are as interesting as the vividly-detailed setting they are all taking place in.

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Ken Follett Personal site Ken Follett is an author of Welsh origin, mainly adhering to the creation of thrillers and historical novels (often combining the two). He obtained more than 11 awards in literature so far, with some of his most recognized bestsellers being Fall of Giants and Winter of the World.