Erich Maria Remarque: All quiet on the western front. (1960, Putnam)
248 pages
English language
Published Jan. 24, 1960 by Putnam.
This edition is in Hebrew. Youthful, enthusiastic, they become soldiers. But despite what they have learned, they break into pieces under the first bombardment in the trenches. And as horrible war plods on year after year, Paul holds fast to a single vow: to fight against the principles of hate that meaninglessly pits young men of the same generation but different uniforms against each other --- if only he can come out of the war alive
A re-read. Tremendous, of course. The translation (from German to British English) renders the prose a bit matter-of-fact, losing some of its emotional heft, but this book is still rightly poised amongst the top war novels of all time.
4 1/2 stars
Yeah, I liked this. I can see why this is a classic and why it has withstood the test of time. I'm sure it was controversial back in the day because it was kind of gritty and risque'. I'm not one for war stories so the fact that I read this and was engaged until the end is a testament to the authors ability to tell it "like it is" without sugar-coating or sentimentality which would render it corny. And we all know I have an adversion to corny.
So yeah, force yourself out of your comfort zone occasionally and read something you aren't exactly drawn towards. There is a lot of classic literature out there and it's almost always worthy of your reading time. Go for it.
