anti-war literature at its best
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Great novel. The journey from childhood to manhood is supposed to be full of joy and mystery, but this novel shows, doesn't tell, of what that journey is like during a world war. This book was banned by the Nazis when they came to power in 1933. If you read this novel, you'll understand why it was banned in Nazi Germany.
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Read this before you die!
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I bought an original 1929 copy on ebay and this is one hell of a book. If anyone has any idea that war is glorious you will be jarred severely by the this story. The true horror of the ordinary man fighting to keep alive is documented with crystal clear vision.
I initially found the style of writing a little off putting, but I have to say I rarely get sucked into a story as thoroughly as this one, I even have had nightmares about it's content!
In a similar way that Das Boot shared the human side of the 'enemy', AQOTWF does the same.....at the end of everything we are all very similar, whether English, French or German. We all worry and care about our loved ones.
AQOTWF was one of the books the Nazi's burnt in the 30's. That is sufficient reason to read it.
I can't say you will enjoy it, but I'm sure it will give you a valuable insight into the hellish lives the brave soldiers of all nations who suffered so much. God rest their souls.
If you are buying this book get a hold of Birdsong, it follows a similar thread.
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Fantastic
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I am one of these people who always wanted to read a great classic and enjoy it.
Unfortunately what usually happens is that I never finish a book of this type because it is too much like hard work and I go back to something less challenging.
Not so with this book. It grabbed me immediately and I lapped up every page. The author succeeded in bringing across difficult emotional subjects in an effortless way and I would thoroughly recommend it to everyone.
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Exposes well the despair and hopelessness of trench warfare
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Very tragic and horrific account of the lives of a group of German ex-classmate soldiers in the trenches of WWI. The novel brings across well the hopelessness and futility of it all, especially at the very end of the story. Most of the time the story could be about the experiences of any group of WWI soldiers from any country as there are relatively few specifically German reference points apart from the characters' names. The writing is in the present tense, which I usually find annoying and did so to some extent here, but it does bring across the drama of the action very vividly. The language is very simple and the book was a quick read despite its nearly 300 pages.
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The last enemy ...
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Erich Marie Remarque was a truly great writer of his generation. Imagine how fresh this novel was when first published - imagine reading it in the original German language. Notwithstanding the many decades that have passed it remains a masterpiece. I first read 'All Quiet' in the 1960's.
I promise you, it changed my life forever. Few books in my nearly six decades of reading have done that.
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