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A review by csolan
Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain
2.0
This is only the fifth book I've reviewed in all my years on Goodreads, but it must be said: Thank God I'm done.
Please excuse my rambling in advance.
I wanted to read this book after watching the film (loosely) based on Vera Brittain's memoir, but wow. Only about half of the 608 pages actually deals with WWI, and it is very different from the movie. I know I'm being one of those philistines who thinks the movie is better than the book, but hear me out.
It took me three years (3 YEARS) to read this book because of how long winded and boring it was. I would have to put it down for months at a time, but then begrudgingly pick it back up, because I am unfortunately a completionist. Brittain writes in an outdated style, which is fair enough considering she wrote the book almost 100 years ago, but it makes some of the paragraphs almost incomprehensible (and I'd like to point out that I have a Master's degree).
Though there are certainly some interesting parts where she describes her time nursing during WWI, in the sections after 1918, she is constantly referencing obscure events and changes in post-WWI British political minutiae, and refers to "important" people as simply "Mrs Brown", "M---n" or sometimes she just abbreviates names to one or two letters (WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE??).
She writes about things that people in the 21st century probably have no reference point for as if they are common knowledge (maybe they were 100 years ago, or if you are a scholar of 1910s-1920s British history?), and her pretentious writing makes it seem that if you don't know what's going on, then the jokes on you and you can go F off. She spends pages and pages and pages going on about "reading at Oxford" and how amazing she is for doing so.
I sympathize with Brittain and her whole generation of lost youths; what they went through I wouldn't wish on anyone. But neither would I wish reading this book on anyone either. Two stars because I came out the other side, and I'm giving a little leeway because maybe I just read this in the wrong time period.
Please excuse my rambling in advance.
I wanted to read this book after watching the film (loosely) based on Vera Brittain's memoir, but wow. Only about half of the 608 pages actually deals with WWI, and it is very different from the movie. I know I'm being one of those philistines who thinks the movie is better than the book, but hear me out.
It took me three years (3 YEARS) to read this book because of how long winded and boring it was. I would have to put it down for months at a time, but then begrudgingly pick it back up, because I am unfortunately a completionist. Brittain writes in an outdated style, which is fair enough considering she wrote the book almost 100 years ago, but it makes some of the paragraphs almost incomprehensible (and I'd like to point out that I have a Master's degree).
Though there are certainly some interesting parts where she describes her time nursing during WWI, in the sections after 1918, she is constantly referencing obscure events and changes in post-WWI British political minutiae, and refers to "important" people as simply "Mrs Brown", "M---n" or sometimes she just abbreviates names to one or two letters (WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE??).
She writes about things that people in the 21st century probably have no reference point for as if they are common knowledge (maybe they were 100 years ago, or if you are a scholar of 1910s-1920s British history?), and her pretentious writing makes it seem that if you don't know what's going on, then the jokes on you and you can go F off. She spends pages and pages and pages going on about "reading at Oxford" and how amazing she is for doing so.
I sympathize with Brittain and her whole generation of lost youths; what they went through I wouldn't wish on anyone. But neither would I wish reading this book on anyone either. Two stars because I came out the other side, and I'm giving a little leeway because maybe I just read this in the wrong time period.