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4.18 AVERAGE


Damn, this was a powerful book.

I first heard about this book after watching the Metallica video for One. The video has clips from the old movie based on the book.

Definitely defines a story about a casualty of war and the impact of a person in a war that they have no stake in.

Rated 3.5 stars. It was a rough start but got better as it progressed.
challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Diverse cast of characters: No
challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced
dark emotional sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: N/A
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I was told NOT to read this book, but decided to as it very much appealed to me. It has since been the book that I have recommended to anyone that is interested in seeing the real horrors behind war and the idea of the individual rather than the whole war perspective.
It is one of those books that you don't want to find out what happens next, but also NEED to find out what happens next. The way it is written leaves vivid images in your mind that will stay with you afterwards. 
Absolutely heartbreaking.

Amazing. A masterpiece. Everyone should read it, especially nowadays, when governments turn war into "mission of peace". Johnny should'n be alive, yet he is. And when he finally manage to break through his darkness, the establishment pushes him down again. He's asking for dignity, but it is against regulation.
I feel honored that I came across this book.
dark tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Another harrowing journey into the horrors of war, and yet another book dedicated to those who are not listening. We must, however, keep on reading them and keep on soaking up their message. We must also be sure to pass that message on to our children. Maybe it is naive to think that war can always be avoided, or even that it always should be avoided, but it is books like ‘Johnny Got His Gun’ and ‘All Quiet on the Western Front' that make us think again and look for other options before rushing into war for all the wrong reasons. It was a powerful and affecting read that I certainly didn’t enjoy, but one that I felt was necessary.

What a harrowing read. I certainly hope I don’t lose my arms, legs and face in a mortar accident. If anything, this book has inspired me to sign up for a half marathon to make the most of my limbs and celebrate the fact that I still have legs.

As well as an effective fitness motivator, Johnny is a stark rumination on the human, fleshly cost of war. Chapter 10 in particular seems to depart slightly from the protagonist Bonham’s voice, and Trumbo speaks directly to the reader. As a stand-alone passage, that chapter is the most powerful and graphic argument against war I have ever read. And it is absolutely, chillingly, applicable not only to the so-called Great War that inspired it, but to Vietnam, Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan and all the other meat grinders that followed.

The writing style won’t be for everyone - it has an unpunctuated stream-of-consciousness affectation that prefigures the later Beat Generation authors, which kind of grinds on me, although I must admit it conveys well the internal monologue of a tortured consciousness trapped in an insensate corporeal prison.

Oh, another thing it’s inspired me to do - learn morse code. You can never be too prepared for life’s eventualities.