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The Return of the Soldier
The Return of the Soldier | Rebecca West
27 posts | 42 read | 27 to read
The Return of the Soldier tells the story of a shell-shocked soldier who returns home from the First World War believing that he is in love with a working-class woman from his past, rather than married to his aristocratic wife. His family and doctor must decide whether to allow him to remain safely in his delusion, or to bring him back to reality and return him to the front. A brief novel with a seemingly simple plot, it is a classic of modernist literature and provides a point of entry into discussions of some of the twentieth century's most enduring themes. Appendices include textual variants, patriotic and antiwar verse from World War I, war journalism by West, contemporary paintings and propaganda posters, and material on shell-shock.
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review
Ellen_C
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Pickpick

Brilliant novella about class and trauma in WWI. Capt Chris Baldry‘s amnesia makes him forget the last 15 years of his life, including his marriage. Instead he remembers a woman he used to know. https://cannonballread.com/2022/10/the-return-of-the-soldier-elcicco/

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Daraghkelly
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Pickpick

read in one sitting. very heart breaking. loved it.

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Jas16
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Pickpick

Published in 1918, a soldier returns from war shell shocked causing him to forget the last 15 years of his life. The women who love him- his wife, cousin, and first love each try to deal with what the changes in his reality mean for their own. This book may be short but it does not lack impact, especially in its strong ending. Very much enjoyed this one.
#under150pages #booked2021

Cinfhen This sounds like a powerful read and the cover art is fantastic 😍thanks for posting and sharing ❣️ 3y
Leftcoastzen Virago! Love them , I have some Rebecca West books I need to get to. I‘m surprised I haven‘t glommed onto this one yet . 3y
Jas16 @Leftcoastzen I love Viragos too! This was my first West so I would love to hear if there are others you would recommend. 3y
Leftcoastzen @Jas16 I‘m trying to figure out which ones or one I read . Definitely have more to read .😂I will let you know! 3y
61 likes2 stack adds4 comments
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merelybookish
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Before I can buy the next volumes of the Cazalet Chronicles (which I'm dying to read!), I have to read 4 books off my shelf. Starting with this one. Bonus, it's short 😉 & there's an episode of Backlisted (my current podcast obsession) about it.

vivastory I 💙 Backlisted 3y
merelybookish @vivastory I think I started listening to them after you mentioned The Dark Is Rising episode. I really enjoyed that and other episodes of books I've read. 3y
LeahBergen I like your reward system 😊 3y
See All 8 Comments
batsy I'm not much of a podcast person but Backlisted is one of the few I listen to. So good. 3y
Moray_Reads This is such a powerful, interesting story. Enjoy! 3y
merelybookish @LeahBergen So does my husband. 😆 3y
merelybookish @batsy I am also not much of a podcast person, especially book podcasts, but the discussions on Backlisted are like sitting in on a really great seminar. 3y
merelybookish @Moray_Reads The writing is excellent! 3y
88 likes8 comments
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Ladygodiva7
Return of the Soldier | Rebecca West
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Starting another book, #BOTM, because Austerlitz is a bit slow. This one started off great!! #Reading1001 #1001books

Update 9/11: ROTS was an excellent read!

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Daisey
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Pickpick

This was a short listen at just under 3 hours, but it had a powerful emotional impact. It describes the relationships of three women with a soldier returning from WWI with amnesia caused by shell shock and addresses classist ideas at the same time. One of the things that struck me most was the multiple and conflicting meanings of some phrases, especially in the end scene.

#audiobook #Hoopla
#1001books #Reading1001 July 2020 BotM

JazzFeathers I'm intrigued. I'm getting very interested in WWI. I see the book is available on Serial Reader 😊 4y
Daisey @JazzFeathers I saw it was on Serial Reader too after I had listened. It‘s not really about the war itself but the effects of the war on individuals as well as class interactions at the time. Published in 1918, I think it is probably one of the earliest books to address shell shock. 4y
JazzFeathers @Daisey Exactly what l'm most interested in! 4y
Daisey @JazzFeathers When you get to it, I‘ll be interested to hear what you think! 4y
46 likes1 stack add4 comments
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AnneCecilie
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These are my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin for July. Can‘t wait to start reading.

TheAromaofBooks I love both those covers!!! 4y
AnneCecilie @TheAromaofBooks I actually bought the tagged book for its cover. I love all the covers in that series by Virago 4y
TheAromaofBooks I can see why - the colors are gorgeous! 4y
49 likes3 comments
review
Read66
Return of the Soldier | Rebecca West
Pickpick

A classic off of my TBR list. And I loved it. West would have known many that were changed irrevocably by World War I and this story features a soldier with PTSD as well as the effects his condition has on the family he has left behind. Highly recommended.

ManyWordsLater Was this a modern library torchbearer book? 4y
Read66 I read it through the serial reader app 4y
4 likes2 comments
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Emu
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Mehso-so

I finally finished this one. It is a short book that I actually a quick read, but for some reason I got pulled away from it for a long time. #1001books #reading1001books

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Olivia306
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Pickpick

Unsurprisingly, this novella broke my heart. A bit melodramatic at the beginning, the story quickly evolves into the tragedy of difficult choices, of sefishness and true love, and ultimately, of the terrible realities that some people carry with them for the rest of their lives. I also liked the way the main focus is on the three women and how they deal with and perceive the return of the soldier.

13 likes3 stack adds
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AshleyHoss820
Return of the Soldier | Rebecca West
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Pickpick

This is a slim novel but I was genuinely invested in what was going to happen! I dang near finished this in one sitting. Chris comes home from the war (WWI), but he is shell-shocked and has no memory of the last 15 years. He thinks he is still 20 and still in love with Margaret. Margaret, along with Chris‘ wife, Kitty, and his cousin, Jenny, must try and cure him...right?... 157/1,001 #1001Books

BarbaraBB I was captured by this one too. A slim novel with a lot to tell! 5y
Henrik_Madsen I too enjoyed it. It is a great book on the horrors of war without actually showing the war. I also kiksede the double meaning of the title revealed at the end. 5y
AshleyHoss820 @BarbaraBB Yes! It reminded me of Of Mice and Men! A whole lot of book packed into a slim novel! I loved it! 5y
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AshleyHoss820 @Henrik_Madsen Yes! That was very clever! And, I may be wrong, but wasn‘t this the first novel to really deal with shellshock? There‘s so much going on in this short book! I really liked it! 5y
Henrik_Madsen @AshleyHoss820 It must be one of the first to deal with shellshock. Have you read Pat Barker‘s Regeneration-trilogy? Probably the best fictional books about the subject. 5y
AshleyHoss820 @Henrik_Madsen No, I haven‘t! I‘ll have to add those to the TBR stack! Thank you! 5y
50 likes1 stack add6 comments
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Leniverse

“I thought, as I have often thought before, that the childless have the greatest joy in children, for to us they are just slips of immaturity lovelier than the flowers and with a power over the heart, but to mothers they are fleshly cables binding one down to such profundities of feeling as the awful agony that now possessed her.”

saresmoore Wow, that‘s beautiful & true. 6y
46 likes1 comment
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Leniverse
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I don‘t even know what they are talking about here. 😂 Circles around the neck? 🤷🏻‍♀️ But I‘m guessing that Kitty Baldry has an extra long neck. Unless we‘re talking double chins here. #differentbeautystandards

#Reading1001

Cathythoughts Definitely a strange one 🤷🏻‍♀️ 6y
44 likes1 comment
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toofondofbooks
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ephemeralwaltz
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I first saw these on #bookstagram and then yesterday I went to check them out at the bookstore. The new 40th Anniversary Virago Modern Classics are GORGEOUS and I want them all..

Check ALL of them out here --> https://www.virago.co.uk/books/virago-modern-classics/

AmyG They ARE gorgeous. 6y
Cathythoughts Beautiful 6y
See All 17 Comments
Kaye Very pretty 6y
rubyslippersreads 😍📚😍 6y
readordierachel Whoaaaaa 6y
RohitSawant 😍😍 6y
Kalalalatja They are so beautiful! Are they paperback or hardback? 😍😍 6y
ephemeralwaltz @Kalalalatja they're a sort of tough paperback with flaps inside! So pretty resistant but still simple editions. 6y
Weaponxgirl These are gorgeous! Must resist 6y
Sophoclessweetheart These are divine x 6y
ephemeralwaltz @Weaponxgirl challenge accepted! Will probably fail lol 6y
LeahBergen Wow! 😍😍😍 6y
youneverarrived I‘m not looking 🙈😂 6y
emilyhaldi 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 6y
ladym30 Great photo!! 6y
ephemeralwaltz @ladym30 why thank you! 6y
60 likes17 comments
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hes7
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My tentative stack for #4in48Readathon. I‘m halfway through the top two books, so I‘m including five total books in my weekend plan.

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hes7
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Look what arrived today, @Kristelh! #BookMail #1001BookSwap

Now, I need to actually get my book in the mail. 🙈

Kristelh Oh, that was quick! Glad it made it! 6y
83 likes1 comment
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Kristelh
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In the mail this morning .#1001bookswap #groupA

KellyHunsakerReads You might want to blur her address. 6y
KellyHunsakerReads Of course! 6y
hes7 Yay! I‘m excited! 😊 6y
13 likes4 comments
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Kristelh
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#1001Bookswap, #GroupA, Greetings. Here is a picture of my book.

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rabbitprincess
Mehso-so

A novella with a definite impact. Not sure how I feel about it.

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Kristelh
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#30daysofreadathon, #shortbook, I haven't read this one yet but it would be one of my shortest at 99 pages (and not a small font). #1001Books

11 likes1 stack add
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BarbaraBB
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Pickpick

A soldier returns home from WWI, suffering from shell-shock. He has forgotten the last 15 years and therefore doesn't remember his marriage and his wife. Instead, he dreams of his first love.
It is a short story. For me it could have lasted longer, I really liked the writing. The choice of Jenny as the narrator, while she actually plays hardly a role in the story, gives the story a special twist. #1001books

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cleoh
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2/3 essay outlines done, 0/3 actually written 🙈 on the bright side, this essay is actually about books 😊

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cleoh
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Pickpick

This was a roller coaster of emotion -a soldier returns from war with shell shock, only to find that the life and the people he left behind aren't quite as he remembers them. Short, but the end is still emotionally devastating. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #LitsyAtoZ @BookishMarginalia #litsyreadingchallenge #basedonanhistoricalevent #wwi @jessica

BookishMarginalia 👍🏼👏🏼 7y
31 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Brie
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Pickpick

This is a slim, quiet little novella set during WWI England. Chris, the titular soldier, has just returned from the war suffering from shell shock and memory loss of the last 15 years of his life. He doesn't recognize his wife and sees his adult cousin as his childhood playmate of years past. He pines for the love of his youth, the only person he truly remembers. This Modernist work examines the difficult choice between reality and the past.

39 likes1 stack add