All Quiet on the Western Front is a gripping story about the First World War which, unlike other war stories of the time, expressed the negative aspects of the war, particularly the psychological. You can see throughout the book the psychological horrors that Paul experiences. This psychological aspect of the stories is generally not as obvious or as terrifying as shown in All Quiet on the Western Front. I have always been intrigued by the psychological effect war has on you, and this book was able to provide an accurate portrayal of why war has such horrific effects on soldiers. The most gripping part was when Paul was stuck in the hole. He had the sudden revelation that the French soldier was also a “person”. He noticed that he was not fighting savages; he was fighting a man just like him with a family. This part was really touching and changed my whole perspective on the war. Things like this were sprinkled throughout the book and made me look at the war differently. Since this book was short and concise, it was never boring or contained any unnecessary details, so it moved the plot forward. Sometimes I feel like details were missing, for example the character's physical characteristics were never solidly defined, so a lot was left up to the reader to decide on the character's appearance. Another aspect of this book that I enjoyed was the gruesome description of the war itself. Like the rat-infested trenches, the corpses strewn on the ground and the description of the war. This was one reason why psychological terrors were easily transmitted. Without the description of the war the book would not have had the same effect. We could clearly see the horrible situations the soldiers were living in, ... middle of paper ... ok. He realizes that there is no reason for such a pointless fight. From the point of view of the Russians, such brotherhood is normal, and they do not hesitate to ask Paul to play the piano with them. The author throughout the story expresses some main themes because he went through the war and had a negative experience of it. He tried to show you the negatives and that it doesn't make sense. Throughout the book, using the characters' expressions, he highlights the gruesome psychological effects of war. Paul is very similar to the author as he also detests the very existence of war and sees no reason for it. He even asks why there is war and no one has been able to give him an adequate answer. Since both of these people have experienced war, they reluctantly compared what is horrifying while others who have never experienced it, glorify the moment.