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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
this is a lovely book and much more depressing than i remember it being.
With the centenary of the Great War next year, I think will be reading even more about this event than I have in the past. I was not familiar with this work but found it on my shelves so I must have grabbed it sometime off the donation shelf at work and taken it home due to the WWI theme. Since it is part of a trilogy I will continue the rest later.
Starting this the day before Armistice/Veterans Day seemed apropos. I also dug out my collection of Sassoon's war poems as well.
Starting this the day before Armistice/Veterans Day seemed apropos. I also dug out my collection of Sassoon's war poems as well.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, War
Minor: Homophobia
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I appreciate the way this book closes the emotional distance between myself and people long past, drawing on the commonalities that people across time share. It helps me to remember that people everywhere have worlds and concerns every bit as complicated and weighty as mine are to me. There is also a harrowing scene of coercive and painful psychological "treatment" that was handled powerfully and well.
(Dug review out of the depths of LiveJournal.)
I finished this last night and it absolutely ... I don't know. I'm not quite sure. I think it was fantastic. There is still plenty from it that is rattling around in my head.
I am not quite sure what to think about the fact that two of my favourites (of the books from this year, at least) concern World War I (this one and A Long Long Way). It may just be the weight of everything woven into a book about that time. Anyway: highly recommended.
I finished this last night and it absolutely ... I don't know. I'm not quite sure. I think it was fantastic. There is still plenty from it that is rattling around in my head.
I am not quite sure what to think about the fact that two of my favourites (of the books from this year, at least) concern World War I (this one and A Long Long Way). It may just be the weight of everything woven into a book about that time. Anyway: highly recommended.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was full of really interesting ideas regarding the psychological effects of war, toxic masculinity, and the responsibilities of physicians. Rivers was a really interesting character to me, I enjoyed reading his thought processes behind the conflict between his duty as a participant in the war and his duty to protect his patient's health. While there were many lines and passages that stood out to me, the book as a whole was not always super impactful and since it was not very plot heavy it definitely dragged at points.
*read for ENG 352 - Modern British Fiction*
actual rating: 2.5 stars
actual rating: 2.5 stars
At the time of writing this I'm in the midst of reading [b:Birdsong|6259|Birdsong|Sebastian Faulks|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165555939s/6259.jpg|1093016], which is what prompted me to come back to this book. I had previously given it five stars and listed it as a desert-island book, without having actually commented on it. There are a couple of great WWI novels out there: most of [a:Erich Maria Remarque|4116|Erich Maria Remarque|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1207351165p2/4116.jpg]'s work, some of Hemingway, perhaps [b:The Enormous Room|144896|The Enormous Room|E.E. Cummings|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172167333s/144896.jpg|285621] and Timothy Findley's [b:The Wars|44170|The Looking Glass Wars (The Looking Glass Wars, #1)|Frank Beddor|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170252564s/44170.jpg|918951], and so on. But when I picked up Birdsong again today and started re-immersing myself in WWI fiction, all I could think of was Regeneration, which set the standard for me. I push this book and its sequels on almost everyone I meet. I never travel without it. I can quote large sections of the text on demand. I think of it when I'm reading other books. And I cry every time I finish the trilogy. I don't know how I can endorse it more highly.