Introductory Book to WWI
July 11, 2010 10:57 AM Subscribe
I am look for a gentle and concise history of WWI. As well as possibly another book that focuses on life in the trenches.
Have you read All Quiet on the Western Front? It's a novel, but will definitely give you an idea about the life of a soldier in WWI. It does not, however, deal with the underlying causes of the war, or the macro "what battle happened when and what it meant for the outcome of the war" type information.
posted by Sara C. at 11:03 AM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Sara C. at 11:03 AM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
It's not the whole of WWI, but The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman is a phenomenal book that will give you an understanding of what led up to WWI and why the course of the war went the way it did.
Also, previously.
posted by bedhead at 11:04 AM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
Also, previously.
posted by bedhead at 11:04 AM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
I read this book last year and thought it was very helpful for exactly what you're describing: The First World War by Gerard De Groot
It's only 240 pages long, but it covers a lot of ground and I found it very educational and satisfying to read. Trench warfare is discussed - basically the book has different sections that focus on different things. You get the stuff that led up to the war, how different countries fought the war, the experiences of the soldiers, the experiences of civilians, and the aftermath.
Check your local library to see if they have it there. I found it at mine.
posted by wondermouse at 11:40 AM on July 11, 2010
It's only 240 pages long, but it covers a lot of ground and I found it very educational and satisfying to read. Trench warfare is discussed - basically the book has different sections that focus on different things. You get the stuff that led up to the war, how different countries fought the war, the experiences of the soldiers, the experiences of civilians, and the aftermath.
Check your local library to see if they have it there. I found it at mine.
posted by wondermouse at 11:40 AM on July 11, 2010
Best answer: One of my hobbies is studying WWI (and the cultural ramifications thereof), so I'll be interested in the other responses as well.
First off -- if you're looking for more military history, then John Keegan is likely your best bet. The one hiteleven linked to above is, indeed, the obvious choice. I also have Keegan's An Illustrated History Of The First World War, which I'll actually recommend over the other one -- the Illustrated History has the same information (albiet pared down), and is filled with quality reproductions of photos, maps, etc that help to give you a better idea of the war.
However, if you're looking for more cultural history, I'll recommend one of my favorite WWI books: Rites of Spring by Modris Eksteins. I think it's an easier, more entertaining read than Paul Fussell's The Great War and Modern Memory (which is excellent, too).
Both of these books offer interesting descriptions of what life was like in the trenches (often going off first-hand sources -- letters, journals, etc.), but if you want more first-hand stories of trench life, you could look into Max Arthur's Forgotten Voices of The Great War. I have a few other books similar to this format, but I think this is best one.
If you're interested in fiction, All Quiet on The Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is the go-to book. It gives the trench-life experience -- from the German soldier's perspective. I'd recommend reading it as a supplement to any other book you choose.
posted by paisley sheep at 12:35 PM on July 11, 2010 [6 favorites]
First off -- if you're looking for more military history, then John Keegan is likely your best bet. The one hiteleven linked to above is, indeed, the obvious choice. I also have Keegan's An Illustrated History Of The First World War, which I'll actually recommend over the other one -- the Illustrated History has the same information (albiet pared down), and is filled with quality reproductions of photos, maps, etc that help to give you a better idea of the war.
However, if you're looking for more cultural history, I'll recommend one of my favorite WWI books: Rites of Spring by Modris Eksteins. I think it's an easier, more entertaining read than Paul Fussell's The Great War and Modern Memory (which is excellent, too).
Both of these books offer interesting descriptions of what life was like in the trenches (often going off first-hand sources -- letters, journals, etc.), but if you want more first-hand stories of trench life, you could look into Max Arthur's Forgotten Voices of The Great War. I have a few other books similar to this format, but I think this is best one.
If you're interested in fiction, All Quiet on The Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is the go-to book. It gives the trench-life experience -- from the German soldier's perspective. I'd recommend reading it as a supplement to any other book you choose.
posted by paisley sheep at 12:35 PM on July 11, 2010 [6 favorites]
Contributers here and the previous thread linked to by bedhead hits most of the obvious ones, I think. If you want to read a couple of other classics that deal with life in the trenches, then Siegfried Sassoon's Memoirs of An Infantry Officer and the section on WWI of Robert Grave's flawed but interesting autobiography Goodbye to All That are worth a read. Also, consider Wilfred Owen, the quintessential WWI poet. You also might check out the Great War Archive.
posted by gudrun at 12:48 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by gudrun at 12:48 PM on July 11, 2010
For the "life in the trenches" part of your question, I recommend Death's Men by Denis Winter.
posted by marxchivist at 2:04 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by marxchivist at 2:04 PM on July 11, 2010
Oh yeah, forgot about Goodbye to All That (was shelved in my biography section). It wouldn't necessarily be my first recommendation if you're wanting an overview as it deals with other aspects of Graves' life than just WWI, but it does have a take on trench life.
I won't try and bore with all the intricate details of the effect of WWI on poetry and literature, but since gudrun brought it up, you should read Wilfred Owen's Dulce et Decorum Est -- considered to be the poem that epitomizes the war. Then, after you have read Sassoon's book, Grave's autobiography, and Owen's poem, read Regeneration by Pat Barker. It's a novel based on the mental institution where Owen met Sassoon and where he wrote his famous poem. Also good if you want to get an idea of the concept of shell shock and how it was received back then.
In terms of WWI "memoirs", I also like E.E. Cummings' The Enormous Room.
posted by paisley sheep at 2:10 PM on July 11, 2010
I won't try and bore with all the intricate details of the effect of WWI on poetry and literature, but since gudrun brought it up, you should read Wilfred Owen's Dulce et Decorum Est -- considered to be the poem that epitomizes the war. Then, after you have read Sassoon's book, Grave's autobiography, and Owen's poem, read Regeneration by Pat Barker. It's a novel based on the mental institution where Owen met Sassoon and where he wrote his famous poem. Also good if you want to get an idea of the concept of shell shock and how it was received back then.
In terms of WWI "memoirs", I also like E.E. Cummings' The Enormous Room.
posted by paisley sheep at 2:10 PM on July 11, 2010
I heartily recommend Make The Kaiser Dance by Henry Barry (a Terkelesque collection of stories from AEF officers interviewed in the 1960's and 70's) and Over The Top by Arthur Guy Empey. Both are amazing first person/life-in-the-trenches accounts, the Empey one especially.
posted by Hey Dean Yeager! at 2:11 PM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Hey Dean Yeager! at 2:11 PM on July 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Overwhelmed with the response. Thank you all.
posted by captainscared at 2:17 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by captainscared at 2:17 PM on July 11, 2010
Since novels have been mentioned, don't miss the absolute classic The Good Soldier Švejk by Jaroslav Hašek.
posted by Abiezer at 4:18 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by Abiezer at 4:18 PM on July 11, 2010
More novels: Dalton Trumbo's Johnny Got His Gun and Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms on the individual costs of World War I.
posted by kirkaracha at 4:40 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by kirkaracha at 4:40 PM on July 11, 2010
For the view from the trenches, try Tommy by Richard Holmes. For a pilot's eye view from above, try Sagittarius Rising
posted by nicktf at 8:39 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by nicktf at 8:39 PM on July 11, 2010
Although I haven't read them, I have heard very good things about At The Sharp End and Shock Troops by Tim Cook of the Canadian War Museum. Cook includes a number of primary materials, and the parts where he focuses on the banal elements of soldiering are said to be especially good.
Charley's War, Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun's fictional but highly researched comic about a 16-year old British kid who lies his way into the Battle of the Somme and beyond, isn't exactly subtle in its politics but its depiction of war is grippingly real and unglamourous (And when you consider it was originally printed in a kid's war comic anthology, incredibly subversive.)
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:36 PM on July 11, 2010
Charley's War, Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun's fictional but highly researched comic about a 16-year old British kid who lies his way into the Battle of the Somme and beyond, isn't exactly subtle in its politics but its depiction of war is grippingly real and unglamourous (And when you consider it was originally printed in a kid's war comic anthology, incredibly subversive.)
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:36 PM on July 11, 2010
Michael Howard's The First World War is an excellent introduction. It's only 170 pages.
posted by russilwvong at 10:14 PM on July 11, 2010
posted by russilwvong at 10:14 PM on July 11, 2010
I'd recommend The Guns of August although it provides a view of the opening of the war, rather than the whole war.
posted by rodgerd at 1:31 AM on July 12, 2010
posted by rodgerd at 1:31 AM on July 12, 2010
I have listened to World War I: The "Great War" by the Teaching Company, and it is quite good. I know the list price is expensive, but if you sign up for TTC's newsletter, they rotate through sales pretty regularly. Also, it should be available at your library (or ILL), for free.
posted by Philbo at 6:37 AM on July 12, 2010
posted by Philbo at 6:37 AM on July 12, 2010
You probably have more than you could possibly wish for here already, but a friend just yesterday recommended this book by two French historians (available in English translation). It may be more academic than you're looking for; then again, once you've read a few of the other books here, it might be just right.
posted by lapsangsouchong at 9:19 AM on July 12, 2010
posted by lapsangsouchong at 9:19 AM on July 12, 2010
Already tons of great info here. If you're considering trench warfare, don't forget what happened to injured soldiers. Several women who were nurses during the war wrote memoirs about their experiences. I found the following two bundled in an abridged reader, especially useful since Borden's work seems to be hard to track down on its own. If I recall correctly, LaMotte is available on Project Gutenberg.
Ellen LaMotte - The Backwash of War
Mary Borden - The Forbidden Zone
Vera Brittain's Testament of Youth is more about her life during the period, though she does work as a VAD nurse and includes pieces on those experiences.
posted by burnfirewalls at 1:47 PM on July 12, 2010
Ellen LaMotte - The Backwash of War
Mary Borden - The Forbidden Zone
Vera Brittain's Testament of Youth is more about her life during the period, though she does work as a VAD nurse and includes pieces on those experiences.
posted by burnfirewalls at 1:47 PM on July 12, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Keegan doesn't get much into trench life. There are many choices for that, and I'll leave it up to someone else to make a good suggestion.
posted by hiteleven at 11:02 AM on July 11, 2010