Stephen, our protagonist was the ultimate soldier, not because he wanted to be, but because his humaneness made him so. He endeavored to remain, while carrying on a torrid affair with a married woman, aloof and separate all his feelings that he had buried so long. He was an orphan in more than the physical sense as he tries to understand himself and the turmoil of emotions, and the heinousness of war. Reading this book and knowing the conditions under which these young men lived and died was a nightmare come true. Is it any wonder that these boys, at least the ones who managed to get through the war as Stephen did, were left indelibly marked by tragedy, grief, and the smell of death. Oftentimes, it got to the point in my reading where I felt I just could not go on, and yet I could not stop. I was in a extremely small way like the soldiers forced to look at things deadly unpleasant and vile. It's the sort of book which children have to plead with the adults to let them have a look at. Everything about it is superb. Highly recommended." -- The Bookbag.co.uk

ETA to add link to segment aired on NPR 1/23/14 on digitized British World War I diaries. See below.oh yeah and all the women want children??? literally all of them??? excuse me but having children is not the be all and end all of womanhood. Sebastian Faulk's writing is sumptuous and pitch perfect, capturing the essence of each of the three eras he writes--the tumescent melodrama that unfolds in Amiens in 1910, the desperation, emptiness and incongruous vividness of the war years, and the practical, surging energy and wealth of late 70s London. This is a great novel, an engrossing but devastating read. Just look up every so often and take deep, slow breaths. You'll need them.

The way that the characters and the atmosphere are built by Sebastian Faulks is just amazing! The reader is taken in to that atmosphere, and shares the feelings of the main character, Stephen. You cannot fail to be totally captivated. Escaped from extermination, Stephen feared nothing any more. In the existence he had rejoined, so strange and so removed from what seemed natural, there was only violent death or life to choose between; finer distinctions, such as love, preference or kindness, were redundant.”There are lines you must ponder. Why does one fight in a war? Who do we fight for? Do you fight for your land, your family, your friends....or for those comrades who have fought and died next to you? You are in the trenches and in tunnels, in the middle of bombardments. You are in a tunnel and you may be suffocated and buried alive. This book is about fear. This book is about the warfare of WW1. When the book begins Stephen is an impetuous twenty year old. War is not yet in his future. There are a few references to the song of birds and how this sound is annoying to him. This will not always be the case. As we follow Stephen through his horrific war experiences, we realize how he is maturing - not just aging but developing a new humanity. His courage and his desire to survive are vivid and beautifully detailed. The song of birds, once so annoying, becomes the sound of hope and life. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger really applies here.

This book has everything. It is exciting and horribly moving and oh so wonderful. It is like life: full of the worst and most wonderful. This is a powerful novel, and certainly not for the faint hearted. I read this for my local book club and I can imagine when we meet in February this book is going to make for great discussion. This charming book is a fun (and potentially addictive) way for all ages to delight in nature's winged singers. It's a winning gift for any occasion, from a child's birthday to a hostess gift.Faulks has created a poignant and epic love story, set in the absolute atrocities of the first world war. The scenes in the trenches are truly horrific and they tell the reader the very depths of human despair. I had to pause after a couple of these such scenes, just to let what I had just read, sink in. Hey! I was just setting out the book composition, this is a review of sorts, don't ya know! Alongside the fictionalised first-hand descriptions of the harsh reality of trench warfare, there's also depictions of: Of course as is my rule, I always have to read and review the books before I gift them to make sure the stories are good and, if from my childhood, remain relevant and appropriate!