lex23's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
auds_wright's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, and Violence
Minor: Vomit
fayefayefaye's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
mickb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
amymo73's review against another edition
5.0
I am fairly certain I was supposed to read this for a class in college. Maybe even high school. I know I never made it through the book. The descriptions of the trenches lost me, not so much from gruesomeness but because I didn't understand what was going on.
Older, I still don't understand a lot about trenches, but I can understand more of the book. And what better time to read it then leading up to Armistice Day, now called Veterans Day.
After reading this book, well, it makes me sad that War to End All Wars failed to do that. That we had a second World War. That we continue to have wars. Because, with all due respect, war makes no sense. Which is pretty much what Erich Maria Remarque describes through his narrator, Paul.
What struck me most was when Paul talked about the "enemy" and killing another man simply because his uniform was different. There was no talk of politics, of end goals, etc. Young men convinced of the "glory of war" quickly learned there was none. And they died before they even got a chance to live.
Who does that to a man? To a generation?
The passages I marked:
"We are not youth any longer. We don't want to take the world by storm. We are fleeing. We fly from ourselves. From our life. We were 18 and had begun to love life and the world; and we had to shoot it to pieces."
"I soon found out this much -- terror can be endured so long as a man simply ducks; but it kills if a man thinks about it."
"It was the abstraction I stabbed. But now for the first time, I see you are a man like me. I thought of your hand-grenades, of your bayonet, of your rifle; now I see your wife and your face and our fellowship. Forgive me comrade. We always see it too late."
"I am young. I am 20 years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how people are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another. I have seen that the keenest brains of the world invent weapons and words to make it yet more refined and enduring. And all men of my age, here and over there, all my generation is experiencing these things with me."
Older, I still don't understand a lot about trenches, but I can understand more of the book. And what better time to read it then leading up to Armistice Day, now called Veterans Day.
After reading this book, well, it makes me sad that War to End All Wars failed to do that. That we had a second World War. That we continue to have wars. Because, with all due respect, war makes no sense. Which is pretty much what Erich Maria Remarque describes through his narrator, Paul.
What struck me most was when Paul talked about the "enemy" and killing another man simply because his uniform was different. There was no talk of politics, of end goals, etc. Young men convinced of the "glory of war" quickly learned there was none. And they died before they even got a chance to live.
Who does that to a man? To a generation?
The passages I marked:
"We are not youth any longer. We don't want to take the world by storm. We are fleeing. We fly from ourselves. From our life. We were 18 and had begun to love life and the world; and we had to shoot it to pieces."
"I soon found out this much -- terror can be endured so long as a man simply ducks; but it kills if a man thinks about it."
"It was the abstraction I stabbed. But now for the first time, I see you are a man like me. I thought of your hand-grenades, of your bayonet, of your rifle; now I see your wife and your face and our fellowship. Forgive me comrade. We always see it too late."
"I am young. I am 20 years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how people are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another. I have seen that the keenest brains of the world invent weapons and words to make it yet more refined and enduring. And all men of my age, here and over there, all my generation is experiencing these things with me."
deeprosser's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
marie_mit_e's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
jenna_cross's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I couldn’t connect to the narrator in a way needed to rate this higher. I’m sure the detachment style was on purpose but it didn’t work for me in this case. Glad I can mark this classic off my list but it’s my third 3 star book in a row. Ugh, it may have been my own fault for reading a war story at the height of summer.
peter_fischer's review against another edition
4.0
Story about a group of 18-year old German boys who were coerced by their high school teacher into volunteering for the the Great War. They fight on the western front, where conditions get worse and worse the further the war progresses. The brutality of the conflict and the complete loss of humanity for the soldiers fighting in the utterly pointless trench warfare in Flanders are described in graphic detail, but in very simple and poignant language. The narrator, Paul Bäumer, is the last survivor of the group, but he, too, is killed in the dying days of the war. Apparently Bäumer is based on Remarque’s own experiences in WWI, which is easy to believe, since the narration has the immediacy of personal recollection. Essential reading for everyone!
hiphipmurray97's review against another edition
5.0
Astonishing, gripping, and crushing. Listened to the version narrated by Frank Muller which I now consider to be one of the best audiobook readings ever.