About this title: One of the most famous antiwar novels ever written was first published in 1939, only two days after World War II began. It depicts the interior monologue of Joe Bonham, a World War I infantryman, as he lies helpless in a hospital after his arms and legs have been amputated and with injuries to his face that leave him unable to communicate. He recalls his earlier life and attempts to overcome the tremendous obstacles that now stand between him and the rest of humanity.
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Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Bantam Books
Date Published: 1970
Description: Good. Minor cover wear and tear. age tonings. Pages appear to be FREE of markings. Creases on spine. GoodwillnyBooks is committed to providing each customer with the highest standard of customer service. You may return new items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. read more
Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
"Everyone should read this book regardless of your views on war. First published in 1939, this book is still very relevant today in 2009 which is unfortunate. We, as a country have made so much progress in other areas and yet have learned nothing when it comes to war. Johnny survives a bomb blast in WWI only to wake up confined to a hospital bed unable to see, hear, or speak, with his arms and legs missing. He spends the next 5 years trying desperately to find a way to communicate with the nurses who tend to him. He has to do something to keep himself from going crazy. His life was spared, but at what cost? It would have been more humane to let him die. What's amazing to me is that we have learned nothing since then. The government has made great strides in combat medical care making it possible to save wounded soldiers that in the past would not have made it, yet do not bother to give them the mental care and support they need when they come home and then we wonder why they end up homeless or commit suicide."
"I had totally forgotten about this book until I was reading something else that mentioned the song "One" by Metallica (which is based on the book) and it all came back to me. I think I supressed the memory of this book because I read it for this really whacked out course I took in college that kind of traumatized me!
The class was called Philisophical Psychology-the basic premise of the course being that we are sensing, perceiving beings-just souls if you will- receiving input from some higher power. This book was read to illustrate the point that we can't trust the sensory input from our bodies because sometimes it gives us false information as is the case with poor old Johnny (was that his name?) in the book who is suffering from phantom limb pain/sensation. See the professor basically wanted us all to realize that we don't really have bodies, just the perception of bodies that is supplied to us by this higher power. We could all argue that I know I have a body because I can feel it and he would argue that people see, feel, hear etc all kinds of things that aren't real. In order to pass the class we had to write an essay basically saying we believed that we don't have a body, just a soul. Can you see now why this class was somewhat traumatizing?
Anyway, back to the book. A young soldier wakes up in a hospital bed and slowly begins to realize that his injuries are much worse than he originally believes. As he begins to realize just how many limbs he's missing he attempts to communicate with the staff in some way, finally tapping out messages in morse code by banging his head on his pillow. The staff finally realize his movements are purposeful and that he's not just flailing about.
Obviously there is a strong anti-war message here but for me it will always be linked to that crazy course. It is well written but disturbing to say the least. No wonder why I blocked it out!"
"The writing style (almost stream of consciousness) is very effective. The story itself has a compelling and disturbing premise. A young man in WWI loses his limbs and his face (along with eyes, ears, nose and mouth). The reader is taken through his inner life and, eventually, his making contact with the "outside world" through Morse code (he can still move his head).
However, it goes on and on. I got the point fairly early; war is abd, a waste of life. Pretty standard anti-war/pacifist message. Much of the bulk of the story struck me as either filler or repetition of character/plot points and themes. By the end, I was just ready for the book to end. Given it's fairly straight forward message, it would have been far more effective in a much more tightly written format, a novella as opposed to a novel.
Not horrible...but not the classic I had always heard it was."
"I read this quite some time ago, but the feeling that I remember most, seems fairly timeless. I was of the age to be waiting for my draft number, and was given a second-hand copy, obviously well used. I didn't really make a distinction between what war was being discussed, but that the horrors, and scars left behind would be timeless. The story itself was riveting to me at that time, but might seem a little heavy-handed, if read today. (I should probably read it again, and see, huh.) I do remember digesting the final passages of the book uninterrupted, and being moved, frightened and resigned to the idea that there was a great waste of humanity consumed by these "wars to end all wars". It also sounds a little naive."
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