Thursday, November 11, 2010

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday has posted an interesting question:

It is November 11th, known here in the U.S. as Veteran’s Day, formerly Armistice Day to remember the end of WWI but expanded to honor all veterans who have fought for their country, so …


Do you read war stories? Fictional ones? Histories? 

Not really. While I am a history major, I get turned off by war. Part of its the fact that wars are usually started by such petty things, for example alliances (because I am alliance with said country and not in an alliance with that country, that makes it alright to go to war against that country) and partly its also due to the fact that I grew up in a culture that abhors war and its members to participate in it and also the fact that my ancestors did anything to avoid war (my maternal grandma's father's family left Kansas for N. Alberta due to the fact that the oldest son was being conscripted into the American Army during WWI). But I would say that a large part of it has to due with the fact that I have certain empathy for those that have been affected by war, whether they are civilians or the soldiers themselves.

While I understand the nature of war and why it is fought, there is a side to war that only aggravates issues between countries and the differences can only be further enhanced due to war.

So to answer your question, no, I don't read war stories, or at least tend to. While I think its important to learn about conflict and how it affects people, one doesn't need to learn about the effects of war through war stories. I also find them a little heavy at times.

No comments:

What Strange Paradise - Omar El Akkad

 Title: What Strange Paradise ( Bookshop.org ) Author: Omar El Akkad Published: 2022 (first published 2021) Genre: Fiction, Contemporary, Li...