The Return of the Soldier
Ratings6
Average rating3.3
15
Ratings6
Average rating3.3
Writing her first novel during World War I, West examines the relationship between three women and a soldier suffering from shell-shock. This novel of an enclosed world invaded by public events also embodies in its characters the shifts in England's class structures at the beginning of the twentieth century.
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I wish I'd liked this more than I did. It sounded like such an interesting idea for a story but just didn't work for me. :/
At times it was 2 stars, other times it was 4 stars. rounding it to 3.
First, I see the historical significance of this book. War is brutal, unforgiving and cruel. World War I was especially harsh. So was society. The men went off to fight a terrible war, while the women fought their own battles back home.
The Return of the Soldier focuses on 3 women. They are the wife, cousin, and ex-lover of a soldier. The cousin and wife live together while the soldier is away. Suddenly a woman shows up claiming she received a telegraph from the soldier. He's wounded and is suffering from memory loss, but remembers this ex-love. The rest of the story follows the women as they interact with each other and the soldier (his name is Chris). Overall I found the story to be heartbreaking. It is a difficult topic, and a sad reminder of what really happened. The writing was more of a challenge. It would fluctuate between third person description and first person dialogue. Some parts were eloquently written, but other times it was hard to follow.
I do think this is an important read. Yes, there may be better books now, but it is good for it's age. I did expect a little more on the ending.
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