Would you RA All Quiet on the Western Front with an eighth grader?

[Catherine]

My ds will be 13\14 this coming year and is mature and thoughtful for his age, but doesn't to well with graphic depictions or very painful or negative stories. Could he handle this book? I've never read it myself. TIA.

[Karen in CO]

A little trivia about this book: Hilter had it banned.

 

It does a terrific job of depicting trench warfare. I do remember a scene describing a poison gas attack and several describing specific deaths. I think it is a terrific book and would be fine for a 13/14 that was into military history and had read other war stories. My ds read it when he was closer to 17.

 

The book isn't depressing or painful so much as it gives a haunting feeling of the pointlessness of war. I'm pretty sure that's why Hitler banned it. It could bring out the pacifist in someone.

 

It is one of those books that we all should have read at some point, but I never did until my ds was in highschool.

 

I would recommend you read it yourself before you assign it to any kid under 16.

[Farrar]

I think it's okay for 8th graders. I once read it with some 8th grade "honors" students. But it's graphic. Not so much about the violence (though that too, at times) but more about the daily realities of trench warfare and the aftereffects of the violence in the hospital, many of which are downright disgusting. The scene where they pluck the lice from themselves to toss into the fire to watch them sizzle is burned into my brain.

[Lori D.]

NO!

 

We read it aloud/discussed together when our DSs were 15yo and 16yo, and they were stunned. And they had seen some rather intense movies and played violent video games previously without it really phasing them. I would NOT have wanted to have done this book any younger than what we did do it, I would NEVER have done this book with a sensitive child, and I certainly would NOT allow my students do this one solo! We wanted them to understand real war is NOTHING like the movies and video games, and doing it together allowed us to really discuss the themes of the book and talk about war and violence.

 

The violence in All Quiet on the Western Front if very emotionally intense and psychological (which is *far* more disturbing than just graphic blasting away). It is largely based on the real-life WW1 trench warfare experiences of the author (who, in many ways, was never the same person afterwards, and never really recovered from those experiences).

 

It is a beautifully written book and has a very powerful message of the horror of war, the breaking of innocence, and the hopelessness of the modern world. It is extremely bleak and hopeless in worldview -- the taking of innocent gung-ho teenaged characters (16-18yos), and throwing them into the mechanized inhumane "machine" of war -- bombs blowing people into bits; horribly wounded horses screaming and dragging themselves around and no one able to get to them to euthanize them; hiding under the coffins and dead bodies that were blown up out of the ground to avoid shrapnel from a current bombing; the creeping horror of the mustard gas and hoping your gas mask will work so you don't have your lungs burned out; the sadistic hazing and emotionally twisted cruelty of the drill sergeants (putting 2 bedwetters in bunks above one another and swapping them each night so they pee on each other). There is also some sexuality (a few brief, slightly crude references about male/female relations; a scene with first sex -- suggestive, not graphic -- but you know what happens).

 

There are 2 full chapters that describe 2 horrible bomb bombardments. Absolutely every character in the regiment dies by the end of the book, including the first person narrator.

 

 

After all that, you may be thinking "why on earth did you do such a book with your children?!?" My description above is of specific incidents out of context, and does not at all give you a sense of how beautifully the book is written and how powerful and important the author's themes are. For a more detailed summary of the actual story/events, and themes within the book, check out the free online Sparknotes lit. guide.

 

Other options might be to look for a less intense book if you are specifically looking for a work written on WW1, or from that time period. Or, if you really want your student to be familiar with this book, consider watching the 1930 movie of the book. It is pretty faithful to the book, and the violence and crudities are toned down. There are still some difficult scenes to watch, however.

 

 

BEST of luck, whatever you decide! Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited June 17, 2010 by Lori D.
fixed typos

[radiobrain]

Well, my school read that book in 8th grade.

 

Then we watched the movie in class.

 

Just add that to your pile of info....;)

[Catherine]

I've got my answer. Thanks so much Lori D. I think he's probably a bit too sensitive to handle it just yet. Maybe we will watch the movie.