All Quiet on the Western Front

A powerful anti-war novel in which Remarque immerses the reader in the meat-grinder of WW1, and all the horrors of trench warfare, both hideous and banal.

We read how the war happens to the narrator, Paul. How he cannot escape its clutches, how he & his comrades become so very important to each other. How the impossible to understand, must be experienced to be understood.

Throughout, Remarque makes damned sure the reader comprehends the old lie: dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, and then the sickening realisation of what the title means.

Erich must have been to war, there is no other way he could have done such a good job describing the horrors, joys, banalities, and excitement of rest war. There is no other way he could have known how a person becomes completely changed by it, hollowed out by it, and yet must continue on. If he hasn't, he is an even better writer still.

Good lordt. What a book. I’m some ways it’s hard to believe this is 95 years old. In other ways it’s easy to believe. Nothing had changed. Humans are humans. War is horrible. Aside from the setting or technology this book could’ve been written about prehistoric tribal warfare or the seemingly inevitable WWIII.

Not sure why I haven’t heard more about this other than “there’s a movie adaptation”. This should be required reading in school.

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.