If you are anything like me you will have a
couple of books on the go at the same time. Over the festive period I managed
to get through two novels: The Absolutist
by John Boyne and Regeneration by Pat
Barker.
The
Absolutist
I loved this book. It is a straightforward,
uncomplicated, but beautifully written read, which tells a tale of conflicted
desires and emotions amongst private soldiers engaged in trench warfare in
France in 1916. The story is narrated by the book’s main character, Tristan
Sadler, as he takes us through volunteering himself to join the infantry, his
basic training and then his exploits in France at the battlefront. This isn’t
another book filled with the history of trench warfare though, sure it’s there
it has to be by nature of the setting, but it plays a secondary role. This is a
story about the attitudes and beliefs of the time, differences between class
distinctions and the ‘proper way to behave’. The story centres on Tristan’s
friendship with Will Bancroft and how the moral and social attitudes of the
time shape them as people and soldiers. Tristan is more instinctive and Will
stubborn and opinionated. Both men fight and face their demons.
The narrative mainly covers two periods of
time: 1916 and September 1919. Tristan survives the war and in the 1919 sections
he contacts Will Bancroft’s sister to return correspondence to her that was
entrusted to him after Will’s death. However, the letters are more of excuse to
ensure the meeting. Tristan needs to explain something to her, something that
is just as much a torment to him as the general experiences and memories he has
of being at the front.
As characters my empathy definitely lay
with Tristan and not so much Will, but I have to say this book engaged me so
much as to have a huge ‘NOOOO!’ ringing out in my head as I read of the moment
of Will’s death.
John Boyne is also the author of the
bestselling ‘The Boy in the Striped
Pyjamas’.
Regeneration
This is the first book of a trilogy (two
and three are The Eye in the Door and
The Ghost Road respectively).
Compared to The Absolutist this is a
harder read, I found myself having to concentrate more on the language and
dialogue (and on the odd occasion flick back to remind myself of who said what),
but what the heck books are meant to challenge us! It is another great read and
produced many thought provoking moments.
When I read about this book prior to
purchasing it most information I came across said that the book concentrated on
Siegfried Sassoon, and yes, he is a major character, but I would say that the
principle character, and the one we get to know most, is Dr. William Rivers, an
eminent psychiatrist and one of the first people to deal with what would later
be known as post traumatic stress disorder. The book is mostly set at the Craiglockhart
War Hospital in Scotland in 1917 and gives the reader a totally different
subject and setting to immerse their selves in around the Great War compared to
the usual battle front experiences. The main protagonists are real characters
from history with a fictional account woven around them. Like aspects of The Absolutist it takes us through the
patients’ mental states; some have a fear of being made well and returned to
the front, others are desperate to do anything to get back and serve king and
country. Then there is Siegfried Sassoon who has come to the conclusion that
the war is pointless, that thousands of men are being sacrificed needlessly in
a war that, the outcome of which, ultimately will not matter. We travel with
Sassoon as he tries to make his voice heard.
As I said earlier I very much enjoyed
reading this book, but its heavier style and message means that I won’t be
starting The Eye in the Door just
yet, I feel I need time to complete my digestion of this trilogy’s first
volume.
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