Storm of Steel (Penguin Modern Classics)

I enjoyed reading this (a couple of years back now), but what has stayed with me is a dislike of Junger. I can't be the only one to believe that he enjoyed fighting and killing other men, can I?

Still, a very good read and an antidote to all the revisionist claptrap that tends to hog the headlines. Junger saw his duty as to kill the eemy and took to it with single-minded determination. The translation is excellent.

You may also want to read "Old Soliders Never Die" by Frank Richards for the polar opposite- a fighting Tommy with a sense of humour who also survived the war.

Seriously younger (1/1 people found this helpful)

Along with All Quiet on the Western front it should be compulsory reading for any head of state, or government, considering war. A very modern book in tone, it's open and honest description of trench live in The Great War makes it a fresh read. I've read several books on more recent conflicts that feel more dated (I don't speak German, so the modern translation may play a part). Junger's depiction of events is vivid, when he finds his injured brother at the front it felt like a plot device from a novel, the only difference being it happened. His likening of being shelled to being tied to a post and having a sledgehammer repeatedly aimed at your head, but it just missing every time, is an image that will stay with me. As a memoir of an infantry leader I think it takes some beating.

Definitively 5 Stars (1/1 people found this helpful)

This is 'the' First World War memoir from the German perspective - and five stars is pretty well obligatory. Well written and highly informative. It has the grip of a novel - with telling observation, and unflinching depictions of a crucial moment in history.

Excellent translation (13/17 people found this helpful)

Michael Hofmann's 2003 translation of Ernst Jünger's "In Stahlgewittern" captures the very essence of the original text with superb fluidity. Jünger's text is certainly self congratulatory and is peppered with exoticism and an aestheticisation of war. The self stylisation of the novel is seen with his cavalier disregard for his own safety. Nevertheless, the reader is plunged into the trenches and experiences the horrors and trials of war, albeit through the mediated voice of Jünger. An excellent insight into the life of a soldier during the First World War.

A different perspective (28/30 people found this helpful)

I had read so much about this book beforehand that I snapped up "Storm of steel" as soon as I saw it in the shop. Forget preconceptions about the stereotypical Great War literature, this is a book whose author appears to have accepted the horror of warfare and ,perhaps, thrived on the experience.
Unlike efforts such as the more famous "All quiet on the Western Front" or the work of the British war poets, this book eschews the pathos of the war for a realistic account of the everyday quest for survival and the brutality of the conflict. Some of the accounts, such as the pursuit of British soldiers through the trenches during German offences are vivid and shocking and illustrates how the soldier became de-humanised.
Although written from the German point of view, this is a book that merits it's reputation, if not for the style of writing, then for it's honesty. An essential read for those interested in The Great War.

Ernst Junger, Michael Hofmann

Reader Reviews:

A good read. A Bad man. (0/2 people found this helpful)

Seriously younger (1/1 people found this helpful)

Definitively 5 Stars (1/1 people found this helpful)

Excellent translation (13/17 people found this helpful)

A different perspective (28/30 people found this helpful)

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