“The war, an operation instigated by men, still felt to him like a storm decreed by fate, an unleashing of powerful elements, unaccountable and beyond criticism.”
A classic of first world war German literature, Outside Verdun is a gripping, heart-breaking story of revenge and sacrifice based on Arnold Zweig’s own first-hand experiences of combat. Published in 2014 to mark the centenary year of the commencement of hostilities, my new translation of Erziehung vor Verdun was the first UK publication of this forgotten masterpiece.