About this title: A bestseller in Britain, where it has been compared to "A Farewell to Arms", this novel about a clandestine love affair between an Englishman and a Frenchwoman is set against the backdrop of World War I. It includes vivid, harrowing, unforgettable battle scenes and a fascinating look at a little known area of the war: the setting of underground mines below enemy lines via a series of secret tunnels.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Trade pb
Publisher: Vintage Books
Date Published: 06/1997
ISBN-13:9780679776819ISBN:0679776818
Description: Good. No dust jacket. Good condition outside cover has a slight crease. Unknown printing. Illustrated by. 483 p. ; 1. 12" x 8. 02" x 5. 22". read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Vintage Books USA
Date Published: 1997
ISBN-13:9780679776819ISBN:0679776818
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Light edge and corner wear. No marks. Tight, square book. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 496 p. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1997
ISBN-13:9780679776819ISBN:0679776818
Description: Very Good. Slight cover wear with minor scuffing to edges. 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
"This book is difficult to classify as either good or bad. Parts of it were vivd and gripping (the war scenes), but the main characters, Stephen and Isabelle, were lacking something. I really did'nt like or understand either of them. I did'nt so much see their relationship as a deep love story, but rather a giving in to lust by two people who were either bored or dissatisfied. I could not relate to Isabell's reasoning behind her actions. I understand what the author was trying to do here and I certainly respect it. If I were rating just his descriptions of the war and the soldiers I would give four and a half stars. These were outstanding. It was the fleshing out of the characters that dissappointed me."
"It's as if the author is writing from personal experience
The way that the characters and the atmosphere are built by Sebastian Faulks is just amazing! The reader is taken in to that atmosphere, and shares the feelings of the main character, Stephen. You cannot fail to be totally captivated.
Anyone who has served for any significant period in the Armed Forces will instantly relate to the use of black humour to cover the awful reality and horror. Faulks also manages to reflect on how every aspect of life continues, perhaps in the background, as the war goes on. There is a strong and emotive love story. There is a very powerful understanding of the futility of war and its effects on everyone involved, regardless of national allegiance. One of the most poignant parts of the book, for me, is the description of the feelings of the sappers as they tunnel deep below the battlefield, knowing that their counterparts are experiencing the same hopes and fears, only feet away through the awful mud and darkness. Death is never more than a split second away.
Having had the privilege of sitting with Somme veterans, listening to their vivid memories of the trenches and the contacts, and those friends who lost their lives, I can say, with great confidence, that Birdsong takes us as close as we could to being there as is possible.
It is a shame that it is not possible to award six stars to any book reviewed on Amazon, for Birdsong would surely deserve such an award. This one definitely makes it into my lifetime favourite five.
I would have no hesitation in recommending Birdsong to absolutely anyone, but most especially to any politician who is thinking about sending young people to their deaths in war.
Footnote: I was surprised that "The Magic Mountain" by Thomas Mann featured in Sebastian Faulks's top one hundred books. It sits right at the opposite end of the gripping to boring spectrum of reading to this magnificent work: Birdsong."
"This was my second reading of Birdsong, and I expected to be less stunned, less appalled, and less involved in this masterpiece of a novel. I couldn't have been more wrong. Even on second reading, Birdsong retains huge power as a novel. It serves as a hugely important reminder of the near past, of the sacrifices that were made by our very close ancestors to preserve our way of life. It's full of passion, of the resilience of human nature, and the depths that humanity can dredge in times of war.
The main character is Stephen Wraysford, and the story starts by him embarking on a passionate affair with the Mistress of the house he comes to stay at in Northern France, just before the First World War. What follows is a novel that crosses decades and continents, depicting the vital importance of our history to modern day living. It's alternately devastating and optimistic. What stands out to me the most is the contrast between the war the young men experienced in the fields of France and Belgium, in comparison to everyone "doing their bit," back home. The effective creation of an entire generation of lost young men, who's lives would never recover from the dreadful things they witnessed in the course of battle is truly devastating. Books like this need to be read, these men need to be remembered, and Birdsong should be on every school reading list. It's vital, magnificient, and human. Read it."
"This was an amazing novel. I can't remember the last time I read a book so compulsively and was as consumed by it as I was by this work. Reading it, for me, however, was an exhausting experience, and not one I would wish to repeat. I don't know if that means the novel should earn a single star or five, so I compromised with a three-star rating, which is probably low. Faulks puts his reader through every emotion he possibly can in one work - fear, repulsion, shame, pity, deep sadness, even a touch of happiness here and there - and he squeezes several genres into a single novel, as well, since at times you seem to be reading a pure war story, at times a somewhat explicit romance novel, now historical fiction, then a modern-day drama, later a family saga ..... on and on. I don't remember any jolting transitions from one mood to another ... just realizations from time to time that I had somehow passed from this one to that. Putting the book down was never an option. The final battlefield scenes with the novel's main character and his fellow soldier were among the most heartbreaking in literature. Read at your own risk."
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