The Storm of Steel: Original 1929 Translation Paperback – October 5, 2019

For English speakers there's a plethora of English books on World War 1. When a hundred thousand soldiers died in a months time and when that tragic enormity happens many times over in major battles over a 4 year span, you might expect a great many people to experience emotions and write about them. For us English speakers it might be about the war in general, the affect on the British people at home, the Somme, Ypres, Mons and many battles in between.But what about from a German point of view? What about Britain's enemy...our enemy. It's easy to feel animosity toward Germany from the English speaking world. But because of this book, one has the opportunity to visualize the German soldier as a human being just like everybody else, his feelings just like everybody else and his thoughts similar to everybody else.The German soldier felt the horror and did his duty. The German loved his country and obeyed his orders. He witnessed the gore and felt the very same way as his enemy. I was surprised at how the soldier respected his enemy and even complemented the British soldiers. Still, the German experienced the humanity or lack of exactly as the British. The person fought the British in the Somme area so his main foe was British.The words used and the mental pictures the author conveyed was unique from other World War 1 books. There was passion and style, interest and suspense and it was one of those books you enjoyed from a literary point of view macabre as it always is when people describe the indescribable of that horrible human experience. It was important in that the perspective was unique on one hand and by relating the sameness of the soldier's experience on the other side it made me realize a oneness of the horror.

amidst the death & chaos; Junger puts you there. The noise, smell, darkness, cold, earth - memorable descriptions and detailed writing. Always a growing appreciation for this era and generation of young men.

TSOS is an amazing book. It is harsh, it is real, and it is interesting. I highly recommend you reading this book.Junger is not trying to entertain you or mythologize the battle field. He describes in gruesome detailed the death and destruction of the truly horrifying war. He accounts his journey during multiple battlefields and cities. You will read in a cold and emotional-less way about men and brothers who died and were wounded. This is a great anti-war book for it does not sugar coat the horrors. This book is not good for the faint of heart. After reading this book, I definitely have a deeper understanding and respect for the German people during WW1 and the German people of post-war Germany.This book was originally Junger’s journal. His opinions and thoughts are seen on these pages. This book is real. Junger talks about his love for his nation, his views on the French and Brits, and his opinions on war. Junger is a man from a pre global-liberal world. His views are nationalistic. He glorifies war in a certain way. While you read, you might be surprise how quickly he can go from talking about a close friend’s death to him attaining a medal. Try to remember this was originally written as a journal, and also try putting yourself in this setting and see how you would cope with having to face death multiple times. Maybe talking about achieving a medal would have motivate you to not be subdued to the deep emotional pains you see every day. Being able to read his views is such a blessing since you can look into the minds of the Germans of WW1. Learning these views is necessary to understanding what comes in the following decades for Germany.The book is very interesting for many reason, but the main reason this book is interesting to me is you get to look into a soldier who saw and experienced similar experiences as Adolf H*tler did during his time in WW1. Reading about a German’s love of Germany, the horrors of war, and feeling the shame of losing after fighting with all your heart, sole, and mind in the trenches will give you a much needed perspective on H*tler, the rise of National-Socialism in the 1930’s, and WW2.

I thoroughly enjoyed Reading Mystery Grove's reprint of this "infamous" edition of Jünger's first book. I have not read the standard copy of Storm of Steel that's commonly purchased from Penguin, but what ever the case may be Jünger's insane four years of are worth reading about. The man saw many of the biggest battles of the Western Front, and amazingly survived nearly being killed seemingly dozens of times. The way he describes these experiences, his fellow soldiers, civilians, the landscapes, the lighthearted moments and the most dark and horrific days is a testament to his writing ability and vivid recollection. Once you read it you understand why this is a war memoir classic. A solid 5!My only irritation with the book was that it had far more typos than I was expecting. If MGP had given it one more go over, or maybe two this book would get a 5 out of 5 score all round. DO NOT make this a reason to not purchase though. It's still a worthwhile read the typos are just annoying.Favorite quote from The Storm of Steel: "Helen is spitting in our trenches. Great big bits. We want potatoes. All sizes."

The details of life in the trenches, and the horrible combat experienced in and around them, is so vividly recounted that you can almost hear the artillery and gunfire, smell the acrid smoke and vapor and decomposing of the slain, and feel the range of emotions that the combatants experienced.