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A review by sams84
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
5.0
What can I say about All Quiet on the Western Front? It has left me feeling emotionally confused yet numb and weighed down by an immense mourning that I can't explain, nor would I want to. Remarque's work is vivid yet simple, taking the reader on a journey into the bowels of Hell itself (and no I don't think that is an exaggeration, far from it actually) as Paul Baumer and his schoolfriends move from the innocence of the classroom to the grim, gritty reality of the 1914-1918 Western Front. As the shells and bullets rain down, their innocence is stripped away leaving behind their raw, experienced yet still young souls behind.
Remarque obviously draws on his own experiences at the Front in telling this heart-rending tale of the young men on both sides of the War who sacrificed not just their lives, but their souls to fight, whether they agreed or even understood why they were there (after all how can countries declare war as one mountain cannot insult another, nor a stream, nor a wood, nor a field).
Say what you will about this book , the author's intentions or war itself, reading this book will leave you a more forgiving, respectful and understanding person than before. This is the tale of everyone of the lost generation who fought, bled and died in the trenches and Remarque does them and their sacrifices justice and honours them well, as should we all.
Remarque obviously draws on his own experiences at the Front in telling this heart-rending tale of the young men on both sides of the War who sacrificed not just their lives, but their souls to fight, whether they agreed or even understood why they were there (after all how can countries declare war as one mountain cannot insult another, nor a stream, nor a wood, nor a field).
Say what you will about this book , the author's intentions or war itself, reading this book will leave you a more forgiving, respectful and understanding person than before. This is the tale of everyone of the lost generation who fought, bled and died in the trenches and Remarque does them and their sacrifices justice and honours them well, as should we all.