The Last Green Valley by Mark Sullivan

Published on February 5, 2022

"Whatever emotions you carry in your heart, Martel, especially love. God listens loud and clear if you feel love. The Almighty also knows if you are feeling good. The Universal Intelligence responds when you are happy or courageous or even if you are just calm. It understands when you are grateful for the miracle of your existence and rushes to help you when you have a dream that helps other people. The Divine hears all the languages of the heart and beauty."      

     -Corporal Gheorghe, from the novel, in answer to Emil's question,

 "What are the primary languages of God?"

I read Beneath a Scarlet Sky, an historical fiction based on a true story by this author in 2017 and found it an inspiring and memorable read. In the Preface of The Last Green Valley, Sullivan says he thought he might never find another story as touching and transformative as ...Scarlet Sky. Well, he absolutely DID find one! You must read the Preface and the Afterword to know the fascinating background to this novel, based on the survival story of an actual family.

This story of Emil and Adeline Martel's evacuation by the Nazis from an imminent invasion by Stalin's forces in 1944 Ukraine is mind-boggling. This journey is known historically as the Long Trek. The Martels claimed they were "fleeing the bear (Russia) and running with the wolves (Nazis)." This crossing as a family (with 2 young sons) was grueling, to say the least, fraught with many dangers, but when Emil and Adeline are separated and must find each other again, the obstacles they face are all the more horrendous. Often events were so violent, so sad, I had to put the book aside for a while. 

Although there is almost no humor in this story, there is much wisdom expressed, especially by secondary characters: Mrs. Kantor, the elderly employer of the very young Adeline; Frau Schmidt, Adeline's land lady; and Corporal Gheorghe, who one might describe as a savior for Emil. See the quote for an example.

I have read many historical fictions set during WWII, many with accounts of Nazi atrocities and the Holocaust. I always find them emotionally intense, often heart-breaking and more often than not, inspiring. In this novel, I learned of Holodomor, or Terror-Famine, inflicted by Stalin's regime, another example of genocide in which millions of Ukrainians died. Important to know Stalin ranks right up there with Hitler on the cruelty scale! And how sadly ironic to hear of the current threat to Ukraine by Putin's Russia!

This fictionalized account of the Martels' amazing survival story gets a 5 rating from me, certainly a page-turner. One cannot help but be inspired by their faith, resilience, determination and strength. I recommend it highly.

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Updated on August 24, 2023

An unusually large group of Page Turners gathered today to discuss The Last Green Valley----19 people! It may have been a change of venue or maybe the fact that some of the summer travels are over. We met at the Orange County Public Library downtown where we had a room to conduct our meeting and then a tour of the library. This year is the 100th birthday of the library and the history surprised many of us. We were very impressed with features offered, particularly the technology available. 

The novel received a 4.1 average rating with no votes below 3. I believe we all learned some European history that we did not know before and were inspired by the struggles the Martel family overcame. Most of us found it difficult to read because of the horrific violence and inhumanity they experienced.