Monday, September 12, 2016

The Beauty and the Sorrow by Peter Englund

The Beauty and the Sorrow by Peter Englund

What an amazing book! This is a work of nonfiction telling the stories of about 20 real people who took some part in World War I, the Great War, the War to end war.  These are not the generals or kings or great leaders; there are no maps with sweeping arrows showing fronts and strongholds.  These are the little people who were in the trenches, the fledgling airplanes, the dreadnoughts, the nurses, and the doctors.  These are their stories told from meticulous research of their letters and journals telling of their trials and triumphs from France to Germany to Russia to Mesopotamia to Africa.  I felt as if I knew them personally and was amazed at what they survived.  It is an excellent book and I highly recommend it.