Book Review – Anthem for Doomed Youth
Book Review – Anthem for Doomed Youth by Wilfred Owen
Synopsis:
‘Tonight he noticed how the women’s eyes
Passed from him to the strong men that were whole.’The true horror of the trenches is brought to life in this selection of poetry from the front line. (Taken from Goodreads page)
Review
I freely admit that I’m not the most well-read when it comes to poetry. I view it like music or visual arts – if I enjoy it then I like it. Owen definitely hits a sweet spot for me. Owen is a prominent World War I poet who is not outright anti-war but his writings are that which does not glorify war at all. One of his most famous poems is likely “Dulce et Decorum Est” which has the Latin phrase “it’s glorious for one to die for his country” in a satirical sense.
My absolute favorite one was called “The Letter” and Owen does an amazing emotional story in one page. He takes a dual conversation structure. With one, he’s writing a letter to his wife to make his daily life some banal and everyday struggles as if he were home with her. With the other, he’s experiencing a call to get ready for a battle and the aftermath. A pretty emotional story.
As with any author poet there will be some that hit and some that miss and it depends on your mood, interest, and focus on the material. A front lines look at poet in the heart of it during The Great War shows the valuableness of the medium and the agony of war.
Final Grade
A-
Video
Get The Book (And Support The Show)
Cave To The Cross GoodReads Page
To check out more reviews and see what Patrick’s reading go to his GoodReads page here.
Other book reviews can be found here.
