Dalton Trumbo (1905–1976)

“Then how could a guy lose his arms and legs and ears and eyes and nose and mouth and still be alive?
How did you make any sense out of it?”

Pretty much sums up the theme of this book. A young man, flung into war, wakes up to the above situation and while reliving his life, struggles with the horror of his predicament. It's more like a horror novel than a war novel, considering the condition of the poor man.

I enjoyed this read but didn't love the ending. I felt like I needed more closure.
And I'll tell ya' what, on a personal note - I maybe shouldn't have read this just one week before I go in for back surgery. I'm not comparing that to what the young man in this book woke up too, but it would be a nightmare for me to wake up next week without the ability to move my arms and legs! So, if you are facing any kind of surgery, don't read this book until after!!!… (mais)

You can tell that everyone involved in this movie was extremely talented -- e.g., given the subject matter the dialogue could easily have been over the top, a bunch of heroic expounding, but Dalton Trumbo kept it mostly grounded. However, it never really coheres into much more than a very long string of events, without much character development to speak of. You always sense the high political stakes of what's going on, but from moment to moment you don't actually feel each individual character's personal investment.… (mais)