anti_formalist12's review against another edition
4.0
An honest accounting of the war. It lacks the moral vacillation of Remarque. It's evident that even twelve years after the war's end, Chevallier was still filled with indignation at those who had done so much to insure the war would happen and then did so little to stop it. And he begins to get at something that WWI gave the world a great insight into: war is not an aberration of industrialized society, it is the apex of industrialized society. Anyone with an interest in the war should read this book.
jackieeh's review against another edition
3.0
Definitely reads more like a firsthand account than a novel (and therefore interested me intellectually, but wasn’t particularly interesting from a narrative standpoint). The horrors of war are all there, as is the anti-war sentiment that I value most in WWI narratives. The moment that stood apart from other books of the era was the moment when the narrator had the shits during a bombardment. The feeling of that particular pain at the most inconvenient time imaginable—a hand reached out from the past and shook mine.
lyssact's review against another edition
4.0
Awesome book. So grateful Im not in ww1. Wrote my paper on it
coffeebooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
dsoldo3's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
richardhannay's review against another edition
2.0
Interesante. Bien escrito. El principal problema es que la estructura del libro, originalmente publicado en 1930 presupone un conocimiento intenso de los hechos de la Gran Guerra en Francia, lo que era habitual en la Francia de la época pero no lo es hoy día. Como consecuencia el libro presenta una estructura fragmentaria. No es facil saber cuando y dónde ocurren los hechos que se narran y, finalmente se convierte en una narración deshilvanada de momentos de trinchera. La falta de personajes secundarios (con la excepción del brillante sargento Négre) y de un hilo central hacen que por momentos se vuelva tediosa.
colinrafferty's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
rkstumblingbear's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0