Landships II

theburk · Captain

a request for the recommended reading section

Centurion · Legend

Whilst it is quite a work one should be a mite cautious. Doubt has been cast in some quarters as to the degree to which it mirrors Remarque's own experiences. Some unkind historians (including some old WW1 German veterans) have remarked that his accounts of events in the rear areas are much more accurate than his front line ones. I'm in no position to judge and am merely pointing out that there is some dissent over the work. This could of course be a political reaction to the fact that his work was championed by one WW1 veteran - a certain Austrian ex corporal! The two were photographed walking over part of the old Western Front together.

In any case Remarque would not, of course, be the only writer to have over egged his own part (Mr Hemmingway may have been another) but that doesn't make it any the less a very well written work of fiction.

Arie Dijkhuis · General

I consider 'All Quiet' more as a literary work and less as an historic document. Remarque will have used his own experience and perhaps even that of other veterans, but the book is not so much an accurate depiction of front life, but more of a warning to future generations. When diplomacy fails and politicians are hesitant, generals take over. These words are as true today as they were then. Think of this before you take up arms and expect to be back before Christmas.

If you are interested in more accurate works, I suggest you read 'The Storm of Steel' and 'Copse 125' by Ernst J�nger. If you are interested in artillery, try 'With the German Guns' by Herbert Sulzbach or 'Zwei Kriegsjahre einer 42cm Batterie' by Major F. Solf. These are not very interesting in their story telling, as they are more like diaries, but they get their facts right.

mad zeppelin · Commander in Chief

Remarque's own war experience was about one month (June - July, if I remember right) in 1917, in which he saw no combat but was a junior soldier detailed to repairing and reconstructing wire obstacles. He was wounded in one leg by an artillery shell during that occupation and never returned to the war zone.

eugene · Field Marshal

very interesting, All quiet on the Western front is actually what got me interested in WWI seriously, I read it and i had to do a book report on it so I decided to build a a7v model as a visual aid, I googled around and found Peter K's website and I was hooked . . .

-- Edited by eugene at 19:10, 2006-10-29

Peter Kempf · Field Marshal

There are - thank God - a very large number of books written by WW1 participants. It was in many ways a more "literary" war than WW2. And I concur: Remarques book IS powerful even though his experience was slim, but J�nger is even better I think. Other favourites of mine are Ludwig Renn ("War"), Barbusse ("The Fire") and of course the brits Siegfrid Sassoon ("Memoirs of a Fox-hunting man") and Edmund Blunden ("The Undertones of War").

This is a subject worthy a site of its own; which there actually are! Check it out at:

http://wsrv.clas.virginia.edu/~egl2r/wwi.html

theburk · Captain

i think that erwin rommels "infantry attack" is a very good book as well, i read an excerpt of it in a WWI book of mine, it was quite interesting. esspecialy considering that "infantry attack" is considered to be one of the books that led to the new warfare in WWII, and nevermind the part its author played in that war.