All Quiet on the Western Front

A book I really want to read is "All Quiet on the Western Front" by Enrich Maria Remarque. I've seen a part of the movie and I loved it. It moved me, it is beautiful. It is an antiwar story based on World War I.



It is written in present tense, first person. Narrated by Paul Baumer, a 19 year old soldier. He deals with the idealistic view of war depicted in school, the death of his comrades, one of them going insane.



I want to read it not just because the movie was moving, but because it seems like a "must-read", you know, to give me perspective on a lot of things.



Even when faced with situations like death, to me it is very abstract. Reading this would maybe probably help me deal with a lot of things. And wars, bombings are all just boring history or newspaper articles.



I remember when I saw the movie, I did not want to turn it off. I mean Mom had to practically wrestle the remote away from me. Then later I read up on the story, read a couple of critic comments, and when I found out that Baumer dies in the end, I cried.



Yes, I saw barely an hour of the movie but the character is so touching, so relate to-able. Paul was just a 19 year old when he had to bear the pain of the war…

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