The Hours Count
by Jillian Cantor
The Rosenbergs,
Julius and Ethel, cold war spies who betrayed their country to the Soviets and
were executed, guilty beyond all doubt of espionage. Or were they? Cantor’s
novel uses the voice of a fictional neighbor of the Rosenbergs, Millie Stein to
relate the story that shocked a nation, and resulted in the execution of both
Julius and Ethel.
It is Millie’s voice that shows us
who Ethel, and to a lesser extent Julius, Rosenberg were. They were the
neighbors down the hall, the friends Millie came to love, the friends who
introduced some light and gaiety into Millie’s life. Ethel was the mother of
two boys who joined Millie and her son on outings to the park. The Rosenbergs
were friends, lovers and parents. Were they spies? Maybe, maybe not. In Cantor’s
capable hands, the Rosenbergs are many things, but most importantly, perhaps,
they are human. They become someone who you might know, and like. They are no
longer some heinous couple who may have betrayed their country, no longer an
evil pair of spies whose names conjure up revulsion.
While this is a work of fiction, the
historical details are, for the most part, very accurate. Using Millie to tell
the story of the Rosenbergs allows the reader a glimpse into who this couple
was, how they lived and the distinct possibility that Ethel was innocent. The
book also does an excellent job of giving the reader a glimpse into what it was
like to live in that time period, from the ‘killer fog’ to the suspicion that
McCarthy ignited and ferociously fed. It was this climate of fear, that one’s
neighbors might be communists and spies, that led to the conviction and
execution of what was quite possibly at least one innocent person. Cantor
shines a light into a period of xenophobia that destroyed many lives, while
accomplishing little. Perhaps this is a lesson we as a society have yet to
learn.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC from
the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.
