This is a gem of a resource. It is a diary written by a
young German soldier who was in World War I, 1914-1918. A diary written at the time
is so much more useful than an account given later coloured by all that the
person concerned has experienced in the meantime.
Jüngers simply tells of everyday occurrences. Some excerpts
are longer than others. And he doesn’t write every single day. In the earlier accounts, there is a lot of pea
soup “Erbsensuppe”.
434 of the 656 pages are diary entries. The other material
is equally important and interesting. There are then about 160 pages of notes
and further explanations about some of the entries. A summary of Jünger’s time
in the war follows. Some other titles are suggested and finally come the publisher’s
acknowledgements.
The diary entries are beautifully simple and matter-of-fact.
“ich ließ mich im Schlafe nicht stőren” ( I didn’t allow my sleep to be
disturbed) he writes of his first night in the trenches on 3 January 1915.
On 4 January we read “Dann kracht es wieder an 4, 5 versheidenen
Orten. Nachher rauche ich mit Peipeke meine Cigarette und wir glauben hinten
auf dem Felde einen Franzosen zu sehen.” (Then it bangs again, four of five
times in different places. Afterwards I smoke a cigarette with Priepke and we think
we see a Frenchman on the field, at the back.)
I am so glad I can read German. This book will be such a
useful tool in helping me to understand what Ernst Lehrs went through in the
Great War.
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