Intimate Voices from the First World War

By Svetlana Palmer and Sarah Wallis

Book Overview

The story of World War I is brought to life through the gripping personal narratives of those at the center of the storm.

World War I was waged by young people from twenty-eight countries in an era without the advantages of military embeds, satellite phones, and streaming media coverage. Intimate Voices from the First World War fills in the gaps in the history of the world's first global confrontation with excerpts from recently uncovered letters and diaries of those on the front lines and their friends at home. In their reflections on the vastness of the enterprise of war, these combatants, victims, and eyewitnesses re-create the scope of the conflict with immediacy and tenderness. Written with the frankness and intimacy of words not intended for public eyes -- full of private passions, prejudices, humor, and vivid insights -- these communiqu s speak to us directly from within the war itself and from all sides of the conflict. These marvelous historical narratives not only immerse readers in an ongoing dialogue about the meaning of human conflict but also serve as reminders of the individual perspectives and beliefs that sometimes get overlooked during times of global strife.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060584203
• ISBN13: 9780060584207
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Length: 381 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Intimate Voices: More than a collection of memories

"Intimate Voices from the First World War", a compilation of letters and diary entries written by both soldiers and civilians, was put together by Svetlana Palmer and Sarah Wallis. The authors represented make up over thirteen nations, each with different backgrounds and with different stories to tell. These should not be mistaken for fabricated stories, in fact they aren't stories at all, they're memories. Unearthed from attics and basements and exhumed from forgotten chests and boxes, these retellings bring the modern reader into the midst of one of the most historical events in history. The book includes six maps and numerous photos throughout it's contents. This book is a primary source. Intimate Voices starts with a sixteen year old boy from Serbia named Vaso Cubrilovic. He writes not from a desk in his bedroom but within the walls a of prison cell. Vaso was one of the conspirators and collaborators in the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand that took place in Sarajevo on the 28th of June, 1914. Within his entry the reader finds a young, spirited, and somewhat innocent boy. He speaks with a sort of callow aggression which makes the reader wonder if he fully understood what he aided in doing. Each chapter represents a particular period in the war, moving from the spark of the war to the smoking embers. It continues with a steady pace with three soldiers, all from different nations, joining the ranks of their countrymen. A stern and unflinching Frenchman named Paul Tuffrau, a joyful and hopeful countrymen from England named Robert Cude, and a patriotic German named Paul Thumm. Each of their attitudes go from excited and optimistic at wars start to grim and dreadful by it's end. They move from assault to assault, seeing friends and foes fall, and witnessing the true hell of war. Entries describe shellings, trench warfare, going over the top, and the shrill fear of it all. The wars purpose seems to lose more and more meaning as each page is turned and each chapter is told. The book then discusses the horror of the sieges and occupations. Parents and children were taken hostage from their families. The German army would only release them if the family gave them supplies or money. Civilians faced harsh treatment and ethnic discrimination from occupying armies. Jews were forced from the city of Przemysl and the Russian soldiers would then raid their apartments and stores. During the Siege of Przemysl, thousands of citizens fell ill due to malnutrition and poor conditions. Many had trouble feeding themselves and thus died of stavation or sunk into illness. By the end of the siege over 120,000 civilians died due to disease and starvation. The once thought dream of returning home by Christmas was utterly crushed into a million pieces. The war was now in full swing, there was full out fighting on not only the Eastern and Western fronts but also in Africa, the Middle-East, and the open sea. The soldiers, the civilians, and even the wor