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adambecket's review against another edition
5.0
So affecting. It made me cry. The definitive history of the worst battle in human history. Spoiler: no one won.
anti_formalist12's review against another edition
4.0
A really fascinating account of the lead up to and the fighting of the most deadly battle in France's history. Occasionally Horne can slip into some light romanticism about the battle, one of those books where Horne makes it seem as if the Germans were within an inch of winning if not for some minor misstep or inclement weather. I really don't buy into much of that stuff. But the chapter on Fort Vaux is one of the most horrific things I have read in some time.
nakedcardboard's review against another edition
5.0
Horne's writing is delicate, elaborate, and sweeping. He lavishly paints a picture of the events leading up to Verdun and the battle itself, highlighting the major players in command and tracking the nightmare on the front lines. I always knew Verdun as a "meat grinder" and while that's true, there are distinct beats to this 10 month long battle and I came away with a more nuanced understanding of them.
The author depicts the flow of battle with expertise, and illustrates the effects it had on both sides. He dives into the nightmare of the new weaponry introduced at Verdun, like flamethrowers or phosgene gas - and you can almost feel the panic as your own heart starts racing imagining what it must have been like to confront these terrors.
I have only two criticisms of the book. Horne will sometimes reference a "well known" figure without giving any context. If you don't happen to know what person or their backstory, it's up to you to figure it out. He will also regularly cite quotes in French (less often German) without any translation, so you'll need to have at least a basic understanding of the language if you want to understand these, or run them through a translator.
Regardless, this stands as one of the best books I've read on WWI and I highly recommend it.
The author depicts the flow of battle with expertise, and illustrates the effects it had on both sides. He dives into the nightmare of the new weaponry introduced at Verdun, like flamethrowers or phosgene gas - and you can almost feel the panic as your own heart starts racing imagining what it must have been like to confront these terrors.
I have only two criticisms of the book. Horne will sometimes reference a "well known" figure without giving any context. If you don't happen to know what person or their backstory, it's up to you to figure it out. He will also regularly cite quotes in French (less often German) without any translation, so you'll need to have at least a basic understanding of the language if you want to understand these, or run them through a translator.
Regardless, this stands as one of the best books I've read on WWI and I highly recommend it.
sleepyboi2988's review against another edition
5.0
Mr. Horne's history of Verdun is excellent, the amazing first hand accounts coupled with his intense examination of the battle made for exquisite reading.
swoody788's review against another edition
4.0
I had to read this book for one of my history classes and I loved it! I learned so much about WWI in general, especially the particular battle at Verdun, and it was surprisingly well-written. I read it in about 5 days (partly because I had a quiz on it and and had put off reading it) but it was very interesting and I really enjoyed it.
alex_ellermann's review against another edition
3.0
‘The Price of Glory: Verdun 1916’ is the definitive popular history of Verdun. Verdun, of course, is one of those one-word signifiers. Like Stalingrad or Agincourt, Verdun occupies a place in the imagination so large that it requires no “Battle of” prefix.
Personally, I was always aware of Verdun. However, I never took much interest in it. Verdun ended before the United States got into WWI, and my focus tends to be on American history and subjects that related to that history. Nevertheless, on a family vacation a couple of years ago, I dragged my family to the great Ossuary at Verdun as a side trip after a visit to the Meuse-Argonne U.S. National Cemetery. Standing among the fields of grave markers in the shadow of the Ossuary in the late evening, I was taken with the vastness of the place, the unimaginable loss of human life that occurred there (roughly 700,000 soldiers, mostly French and German with a sprinkling of English), and my relative ignorance of the battle. That’s when I put ‘The Price of Glory’ on my reading list.
The book itself is something of a grind. With a relative dearth of maps and an assumption of reader familiarity with French language and culture, it requires a fair amount of focus from non-Francophile audiences. Additionally, it reflects the battle itself in that it sometimes devolves into a horror show which, it seems, may never end. Hecatombs of men and animals died in countless horrific ways at Verdun, their uninterred corpses contributing to a ghastly landscape that became the stuff of nightmares. As a reader, it’s hard to plow through those scenes, to let them take up space in the brain. Nevertheless, for those of us who are insatiably curious about our collective history, the investment is worth it.
Because this book can seem daunting, I don’t think I’d recommend it to the reader with a casual interest in WWI. Readers planning a trip to Eastern France, however, may find it worth the investment of time and imagination required to absorb ‘Verdun.’ At least that way, when they drag their families to the Ossuary, they’ll know what they’re looking at and why.
Personally, I was always aware of Verdun. However, I never took much interest in it. Verdun ended before the United States got into WWI, and my focus tends to be on American history and subjects that related to that history. Nevertheless, on a family vacation a couple of years ago, I dragged my family to the great Ossuary at Verdun as a side trip after a visit to the Meuse-Argonne U.S. National Cemetery. Standing among the fields of grave markers in the shadow of the Ossuary in the late evening, I was taken with the vastness of the place, the unimaginable loss of human life that occurred there (roughly 700,000 soldiers, mostly French and German with a sprinkling of English), and my relative ignorance of the battle. That’s when I put ‘The Price of Glory’ on my reading list.
The book itself is something of a grind. With a relative dearth of maps and an assumption of reader familiarity with French language and culture, it requires a fair amount of focus from non-Francophile audiences. Additionally, it reflects the battle itself in that it sometimes devolves into a horror show which, it seems, may never end. Hecatombs of men and animals died in countless horrific ways at Verdun, their uninterred corpses contributing to a ghastly landscape that became the stuff of nightmares. As a reader, it’s hard to plow through those scenes, to let them take up space in the brain. Nevertheless, for those of us who are insatiably curious about our collective history, the investment is worth it.
Because this book can seem daunting, I don’t think I’d recommend it to the reader with a casual interest in WWI. Readers planning a trip to Eastern France, however, may find it worth the investment of time and imagination required to absorb ‘Verdun.’ At least that way, when they drag their families to the Ossuary, they’ll know what they’re looking at and why.
matteo_of_eld's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Listen, the guy is a tory and there is some questionable stuff about the colonial forces so be forewarned. otherwise the book is incredible