"S pervym geroem etogo romana proiskhodiat sobytiia, ne obiasniaemye privychnoi logikoi. On ostaetsia zhiv vo vremia raskulachivaniia. Ne gibnet v zavale shakhty. Puli ne ubivaiut ego na voine. On ne tonet, navodia pontonnye perepravy cherez Dnepr, Vislu, Oder. Nevredimym prokhodit cherez absoliutnoe zlo. I ta zhe sila oberegaet vtorogo geroia knigi ego syna uzhe v nashe vremia. Sudba, liubov, sovest, nepriiatie lzhi chuvstvuiutsia imi odinakovo. eta kniga obo vsem. Strannym obrazom kosnulas ona vsekh proiavlenii chelovecheskoi zhizni. Avtor nashel dlia etogo iasnuiu formu novoi khudozhestvennosti."-- amazon.com

The hero of the story seems to be protected. He has escaped death against all odds: in a mine expolosion, while being shot at, crossing the Dnieper, the Vistula and Oder river in a shoddy boat and the same force protects his son.