Other editions of book Under Fire: The Story of a Squad

Excerpt from Under Fire: The Story of a Squad (Le Feu)Mont blanc, the Dent du Midi, and the Aiguille Verte look across at the bloodless faces that show above the blankets along the gallery of the sanatorium. This roofed-ih gallery of rustic wood-work on the first floor of the palatial hospital is isolated in Space and overlooks the world. The blankets of fine wool - red, green, brown, or white - from which those wasted cheeks and shining eyes protrude are quite still. N 0 sound comes from the long couches except when some one coughs, or that of the pages of a book turned over at long and regular intervals, or the undertone of question and quiet answer between neighbors, or now and again the crescendo disturbance of a daring crow, escaped to the balcony from those flocks that seem threaded across the immense transparency like chaplets of black pearls.Silence is obligatory. Besides, the rich and high-placed who have come here from all the ends of the earth, smitten by the same evil, have lost the habit of talking. They have withdrawn into themselves, to think of their life and of their death.A servant appears in the balcony, dressed in white and walking softly. She brings newspapers and hands them about.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

One of the most powerful accounts of trench warfare from the WWI era, "Under Fire" recounts the experiences of the men of the French Sixth Battalion on the front lines after the German invasion. Compiled from diaries he had written on the front from 1914-1915, and completed in the hospital while recovering from injuries, Barbusse published his work in both serial and novel forms in late 1916. By the end of the war it was a world-wide bestseller, having sold over a quarter of a million copies. The narrative received mixed reviews at first because of Barbusse's gritty and brutal realism, which some war critics saw as validation for their protests, while others felt it fictionalized and exaggerated the war. Since then, "Under Fire" has been ranked with such classics as "A Farewell to Arms" and "All Quiet on the Western Front" as one of the most powerful, realistic portrayals of the horrors of war.

Under Fire - The Story of a Squad by Henri Barbusse (1874-1935) - Translated by Fitzwater Wray. To the memory of the comrades who fell by my side at Crouy and on Hill 119 January, May, and September, 1915. Under Fire: The Story of a Squad (French: Le Feu: journal d'une escouade) by Henri Barbusse (December 1916), was one of the first novels about World War I to be published. Although it is fiction, the novel was based on Barbusse's experiences as a French soldier on the Western Front. The novel takes the form of journal-like anecdotes which the unnamed narrator claims to be writing to record his time in the war. It follows a squad of French volunteer soldiers on the Western front in France after the German invasion. The book opens and ends with broad visions shared by multiple characters but beyond these the action of the novel takes place in occupied France. The anecdotes are episodic, each with a chapter title. The best-known chapter, "The Fire" (Le feu) shares the French-language title of the book. It describes a trench assault from the Allied (French) trench across No-Man's Land into the German trench. In contrast to many war novels which came before it, Under Fire describes war in gritty and brutal realism. It is noted for its realistic descriptions of death in war and the squalid trench conditions.

Under Fire: The Story of a Squad was one of the first novels about World War I to be published. Although it is fiction, the novel was based on Barbusse's experiences as a French soldier on the Western Front. The novel takes the form of journal-like anecdotes which the unnamed narrator claims to be writing to record his time in the war. It follows a squad of French volunteer soldiers on the Western front in France after the German invasion. The book opens and ends with broad visions shared by multiple characters but beyond these the action of the novel takes place in occupied France. The anecdotes are episodic, each with a chapter title. The best-known chapter, "The Fire", describes a trench assault from the Allied (French) trench across No-Man's Land into the German trench. In contrast to many war novels which came before it, Under Fire describes war in gritty and brutal realism. It is noted for its realistic descriptions of death in war and the squalid trench conditions.

Under Fire: The Story of a Squad (French: Le Feu: journal d'une escouade) by Henri Barbusse (December 1916), was one of the first novels about World War I to be published. Although it is fiction, the novel was based on Barbusse's experiences as a French soldier on the Western Front. The novel takes the form of journal-like anecdotes which the unnamed narrator claims to be writing to record his time in the war. It follows a squad of French volunteer soldiers on the Western front in France after the German invasion. The book opens and ends with broad visions shared by multiple characters but beyond these the action of the novel takes place in occupied France. The anecdotes are episodic, each with a chapter title. The best-known chapter, "The Fire" (Le feu) shares the French-language title of the book. It describes a trench assault from the Allied (French) trench across No-Man's Land into the German trench. In contrast to many war novels which came before it, Under Fire describes war in gritty and brutal realism. It is noted for its realistic descriptions of death in war and the squalid trench conditions. (wikipedia.org)