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emorgan25 's review for:
All Quiet on the Western Front
by Erich Maria Remarque
It’s hard to find the words, but I will.
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is a beautifully written, harrowing and eye-opening account of life on the frontlines of the First World War. Told through the eyes of Paul Bäumer, a young German soldier, it captures the brutality of trench warfare and the deep emotional impact it has on those who live through it. Paul’s longing for his old life comes through powerfully in lines like “I want to get that quiet rapture back, feel again, just as before, that fierce and unnamed passion I used to feel when I looked at my books.” That sense of something precious being lost forever runs through the whole novel, and it’s heartbreaking.
Remarque doesn’t just show the violence and chaos of war. He shows how empty and senseless it is. “So why is there a war at all?” Tjaden asks. “There must be some people who find the war worthwhile,” comes the reply. One line that really stayed with me was “The train goes slowly. From time to time it stops, so that the dead can be taken off. It stops a lot.” Quiet, understated and devastating.
This book is a stark reminder of the human cost of war. It left me feeling both moved and unsettled, and I think that’s exactly the point.
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is a beautifully written, harrowing and eye-opening account of life on the frontlines of the First World War. Told through the eyes of Paul Bäumer, a young German soldier, it captures the brutality of trench warfare and the deep emotional impact it has on those who live through it. Paul’s longing for his old life comes through powerfully in lines like “I want to get that quiet rapture back, feel again, just as before, that fierce and unnamed passion I used to feel when I looked at my books.” That sense of something precious being lost forever runs through the whole novel, and it’s heartbreaking.
Remarque doesn’t just show the violence and chaos of war. He shows how empty and senseless it is. “So why is there a war at all?” Tjaden asks. “There must be some people who find the war worthwhile,” comes the reply. One line that really stayed with me was “The train goes slowly. From time to time it stops, so that the dead can be taken off. It stops a lot.” Quiet, understated and devastating.
This book is a stark reminder of the human cost of war. It left me feeling both moved and unsettled, and I think that’s exactly the point.