Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #156 in Books
• Published on: 1994-07-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 528 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Readers who are entranced by sweeping historical sagas will devour Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks' drama set during the first world war. There's even a little high-toned erotica thrown into the mix to convince the doubtful. The book's hero, a 20-year-old Englishman named Stephen Wraysford, finds his true love on a trip to Amiens in 1910. Unfortunately, she's already married, the wife of a wealthy textile baron. Wrayford convinces her to leave a life of passionless comfort to be at his side, but things do not turn out according to plan. Wraysford is haunted by this doomed affair and carries it with him into the trenches of the war. Birdsong derives most of its power from its descriptions of mud and blood, and Wraysford's attempt to retain a scrap of humanity while surrounded by it. There is a simultaneous description of his present-day granddaughter's quest to read his diaries, which is designed to give some sense of perspective; this device is only somewhat successful. Nevertheless, Birdsong is a rewarding read, an unflinching war story and a touching romance.

Synopsis
Set before and during the great war, "Birdsong" captures the drama of that era on both a national and a personal scale. It is the story of Stephen, a young Englishman, who arrives in Amiens in 1910. His life goes through a series of traumatic experiences, from the clandestine love affair that tears apart the family with whom he lives, to the unprecedented experiences of the war itself.

From the Publisher
Powerful and moving bestselling fiction from one of today's greatest living writers.

Customer Reviews

captivating
beautifully written novel - not having read his novels before i didnt know what to expect and not really having much interest in history - im now completely converted its an awesome read - devastating and tragic

JUST BUY THIS BOOK!!
Probably one of the best books I have ever read, if not the best........ BUY THIS BOOK, you won't regret it, SO well written, it was hard to leave and I couldn't wait to pick it up again, felt quite sad when I finished reading it, and had to wait quite a few days before starting a new book. Needed time to absorb and reflect, if I could give this book 10 stars I wouldn't hesitate!!!! Friends had recommended this book to me for years, and somehow I never got around to reading it, but SO pleased I did!! Trust me, it is EXCELLENT!

I do not know!
As the title states I really have no idea if I truly liked this book. I managed to read it swiftly without leaving it aside for long periods of time but that may just be because I have a boring 1hr journey to and from work on a tube! The World War I parts were worth reading because the author managed to capture a sense of pointlessness over the numbers of human casualties and from the numerous war documentaries I have seen he has captured the harshness of the military police towards "cowards" and the almost blind thoughts of winning by the generals at the top regardless of the price.
However, that is all that is worth reading. I hated the main character Stephen, did not warm to Isabelle and felt indifferent to Elizabeth and her trek through history and current love dilemma. The style of the writing with the heavy descriptions suited the war sections but in the "normal" sections were too overbearing, probably why it was so hard to warm to any of the characters. From the beginning Stephen seemed cold and his supposed "love" for Isabelle just did not seem to fit because it almost seemed like it was just written on the page but the reader does not feel any sense of it in the story. The idea of setting parts in the 70's when a person realizes the history of their family and discovers the harsh facts of the war was interesting but because the characters were so dull and almost cold I really did not care.
Obviously a lot of people loved this book and I would recommend reading it if World War I period is your thing but do not approach with exceedingly high expectations.