Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

Im Westen nichts Neues by Erich Maria Remarque

49 reviews

patriciapueyolopez's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death

Minor: Cancer, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

jamie_el's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? N/A

5.0

This book is one I'd consider a must-read for anyone. It is very heavy in topic and definitely a more somber read, but the focus it holds on what it was like for the soldiers of WW1 really brings to life the conflict and reminds us that the people it affected were not dissimilar to us. I think its grit and its honesty makes it one of the best anti-war books ever written.

You find yourself falling in love with the characters, only for them to be cruelly ripped away out of nowhere. And throughout you find yourself asking for what reason it is.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Blood, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Due to the focus on the first world war, there is quite explicit description throughout of the sights and sounds the soldiers experience, including description of injuries, dead bodies etc. which may be distressing to some people.

sarareadsxxx13's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Blood, and War

elisabeth888's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

This is probably the most graphic and depressing novel I have ever read. While originally written in German, none of the effectiveness and pain in Remarque's writing is lost through its English translation. Remarque's novel demonstrates the stupidity of war - how young, poor men (who are really only children) are forced to sacrifice their lives only to profit their government and military leaders.

Throughout the novel, the main character, Paul Bäumer, and his fellow soldiers become lost and dissociated as they attempt to navigate through the horrific reality of war. The soldiers in themselves embody a complex role - they are victims to their government's greed but they are also aggressors to the enemies, who are men and boys just like themselves.

I see many similarities and differences to Tim O'Brien's biography "If I Die in a Combat Zone" which delves into O'Brien's experience as an American foot soldier in the Vietnam War. While Remarque and O'Brien's accounts are separated by 50 years of technological and tactical development, there are multiple similarities, such as toxic and incompetent military leadership, trench warfare, the grief of losing one's comrades, and the unwillingness to even use the word "death" - for O'Brien, death called getting "wasted" and for Remarque death is called "rot". Therefore, while the technology in warfare will change, the similarities of military leadership exploiting the young and poor and leaving generations of men dissociated and traumatized is a constant.

I highly recommend everyone to read All Quiet on the Western Front - however, note that this is a very distressing read and can be especially distressing for those who have served. Please consider viewing content warnings about this book before reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Grief, and War

Moderate: Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Animal death, Racism, Sexual content, Excrement, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

probablytoolate's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Blood, and Alcohol

wyabook234's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, and Medical content

Minor: Bullying and Vomit

carlytenille's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, War, and Injury/Injury detail

abicaro17's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? It's complicated

3.5

Ok this was better than I thought it would be. I read this after I heard about the movie and I don't regret it. Paul is a younger German soldier on the front lines of WW1 who struggles to understand the horrors of war and the trenches. The story is centered around Paul and his 7 classmates. This book, while very serious and somber, reads like a diary. Everything feels past tense but also like it happened a few hours ago not a few years ago. There's almost no dialogue and huge chunks of exposition or philosophical thoughts. This combined with the long chapters made it a difficult read. It's very slow and there isn't a ton of action. It's definitely geared towards history nerds and as someone who likes history but prefers english this was a hard read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

tsubasanyan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and War

Minor: Animal death

eames222's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Violence, and War

Moderate: Animal death