‘They were frightening to the civilians because they had evolved not into killers but into passive beings whose only aim was to endure’
I’m reading an equally interesting and depressing book called Birdsong. It’s a story about the first world war. I’s beautifully yet hauntingly written and it’s very hard not to get affected by the horrors described in the trenches.
Being used to reading all sorts of books I have a capacity for mentally distancing myself when not reading but this one is hard to shake. I’ve been in a very weird mood since I started reading it. I think its the general feeling in the book described by the sentence above – being pushed into loosing all trace of humanity. It’s not about inhuman actions but how seeing to much make you hollow – the hollow men.
Long time since i read a book that affected me this strongly. It will be a relieve when it’s done, both for what it’s given me and for being over.
Letters to my family 