Hi again from Brighton on a rainy saturday afternoon. Very much looking forward to monday when life returns a little bit more to normal and I can go & buy some new books! In the meantime another of my favourite books.
The books are set during the First World War & follows Dr Rivers, an army psychiatrist who treats British Army officers who have returned from France with shell shock & other mental issues sustained in the horrors of the trenches.
The novels contain many real life people, including Dr Rivers who treated among others the ward poet Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. The first book focuses on Rivers treatment of Sassoon who had issued a declaration demanding the end of the war. Rather than court marshal him, the powers sent him to Rivers to be 'cured'. As well as historical figures & real life events, other fictional characters flesh out the books & their stories highlight the supposed glory & horror of the war. The following 2 books continue to include real people & also includes examination of anti war efforts through the eyes of fictional characters.
The books are a fascinating insight into the treatment of shellshock at the time, some Doctors had very brutal methods of treating whilst Rivers seems much more in line with todays methods. Also, the publics & some of the characters hatred towards the so called 'conchies', conscientious objectors of the war.
What I think makes this books so interesting for me is that it it written by a woman and most of the characters are men, not that women can't write about men of course, but Pat Barker seems to write them with such searing honesty & insight.
I have read these books so many times over the years & they led me on to devour everything Pat Barker has written. (Her most recent The Silence of the Girls was fantastic!)
I an only give 10/10! I hope you explore these if you haven't already!