All Quiet on the Western Front

He fell in October 1918, on a day that was so quiet and still on the whole front, that the army report confined itself to the single sentence: All Quiet on the Western Front.
He had fallen forward and lay on the earth as though sleeping. Turning him over one saw that he could not have suffered long; his face had an expression of calm, as though almost glad the end had come.

All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, is considered by many to be the greatest war novel of all time. While I have not ready many war novels, I can see why it is given that consideration. This is a fascinating look at the realities of war. The story focuses on a young German soldier named Paul who spends considerable time on the front lines during World War I. Remarque himself saw combat during The Great War and was wounded five times. He makes it very clear that war is hell and can destroy a man, even if he survives. One of the more poignant sections of the book is when Paul returns home on a short leave, and realizes he feels out of place, even at home. The war has considerably affected him, and he begins to feel that once the war is over he will never feel like a normal part of society again. This is definitely a book protesting the evils and atrocities of war. Anyone who thinks war is glorious (although I hope we've gotten past that delusion as a society) should read this book. Actually, everyone should read this book. I like the words Remarque uses to introduce the book, as it sums up why he wrote it, and why it is important to know what these men went through:

This book is to be neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure, for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it. It will try simply to tell of a generation of men, who, even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war.

Massacre at Mountain Meadows

Massacre at Mountain Meadows by Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley Jr., and Glen M. Leonard

I'd been wanting to read this book ever since I came out, and after getting it as a Christmas gift (thanks Mom) I finally had the chance to read it. There have been many books written on this controversial topic, but I must admit this is the first I have read. Many consider Juanita Brooks' The Mountain Meadows Massacre to be the definitive work on the subject, but I think that this one will be mentioned alongside her book as well. The authors, all Mormons, take a balanced look at events leading up to the massacre and why it happened. It should have never happened, but it did. It's a dark stain on American history, and Mormon history specifically. The authors do a good job of putting the massacre into its proper historical context, examining the background of what was going on in Utah during this time period. However, they do not try to provide excuses for the atrocity, they simply want to try and understand why seemingly good people would commit such a crime. Many people have tried to pin the blame on Brigham Young. As with many historical events, the Mountain Meadows Massacre is too complex to put the blame on any one person. There is no evidence linking Young to ordering the massacre, but there is a letter stating to let the emigrants go, that arrived too late. The leaders in Southern Utah acted on their own in conducting the massacre. However, the authors do note the war fever that was spreading throughout Utah, as the Mormons were preparing to defend themselves against the U.S. military, which was on its way to Utah. Brigham Young certainly played a part in instilling this fever within the Mormon people, and the authors acknowledge that. But that does not mean he condoned the massacre, the evidence noting that he knew nothing about it until it was too late. As for the settlers involved, the authors treat them with fairness as well. John D. Lee became the scapegoat for the whole thing, and did play a large role in the massacre, but others, such as Isaac Haight, played large roles as well, that the authors examine. Overall I felt it was a very balanced book and one that was not written to excuse the crime, but rather to lend understanding to something that is very difficult to comprehend. It is a tragedy that never should have happened, but did, and there is no sense in trying to cover it up or make excuses for it. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to try and understand this subject, and for anyone interested in Mormon or Western history.