It is rare to find something related to the first world war that is commenly known. Everyone knows something about the second world war, even if it is only that Hitler was involved. The stepping stone to all that happening is the first war although it has become a secondary topic in modern history. This book lacks feeling, it is straight forward and it is sometimes horrible. This book shows what the war actually was like. The postcards back home may painted a heoric and enjoyable picture of the war but the reality looked different. Death and injuries were normal. It was a war of masses, massive amounts of machinery but also a massive amount of soldiers to fall to these machines. So the protaganist couldn't be a emotional and heartfelt person, of course he had feelings but survivial came first and that meant doing things and not feel. Throughout the story you lose characters. Many you liked and some you just heart of but at some point you were no longer surprised to read that someone died, neither were you really excited that someone survived because he could still die. In my head I was counting down the months until the end of fighting and lost hope with everyone of them and if a book makes you feel like a person at home hopeing that at least one person would crawl home, is for me evident that this book did everything right. Also the end is as dry as it could be. One life mattered nothing and to read that nothing happened in the west although a young person with some many options and chances dies makes clear what war is like. All in all as a young reader I think this a must read. (Best in german if possible) To see mostly people around my age face death and danger and also socities view about them in such a extrem time makes you think. It takes the heroism out of war and shows you it's basic bone structure that has nothing but useless horrors in it.