Tony Napoli

Reviewing a widely read and thoroughly analyzed work such as this one is challenging, maybe even pretentious work that is bound to be unappreciated. Understanding that, I can only give my wholly subjective opinion through the lense of my own values on one side, and knowledge on the subject of the First World War on the other.

That being said, I feel this work as a one single unit to read, as a book is enjoyable. It provides a haunting insight into the mind of a young man thoroughly ruined by this war. He has lost all that held meaning in his previous life to the point that he cannot look at his pre-war self the same. That man is alien. He has been reshaped by the war and cannot be shaped back, thus his previous achievements, acquaintances, friends do not hold the same meaning, and cannot hold the same meaning as they once did. I was moved most by the section of the book that details the main characters short leave and reunion with his family and friends, as well as his previous interests and passions. In a scene he visits his old room and picks up one of the books he loved to read as younger man, only to realise that such menial, trivial passtimes will never spark the same emotions again.

Themes of camarederie, loyalty, honour, fear, alienation are present throughout and such as they are they do provide a crux of ideas the book revolves around and which I have nothing to argue against. However, I do feel this work has been so acclaimed in the world of western literature because it has told exactly what its audience wanted to hear. Do we really need to read a book to tell us that being shelled is bad? That losing a friend sucks? I don't believe we need to read an entire novel to get to those conclusions and this is exactly what some parts of this book put forward as some sort of amazing insight into the mind of a beleaguered youth. What I had expected were an entire array of contrasts, moral dilemmas and grey ares, battle fever and at times, bloodlust. This, I feel would bring necessary depth into this novel, and I couldn't help but give it five stars then. As such, I have learned nothing new, felt nothing that I haven't felt when reading a straight-forward history of the war.

Having said all of that, I do recommend this book to anyone with a passing interest in World War One, as it is an enjoyable novel, and I will be reading other works by Remarque.… (lisätietoja)