i loved this book and cant believe that it has had some bad reviews, its was a real insight of how the men suffered at war, and what they went through and was so descriptive i felt as if i could pretty much see what was going on, i couldn't put it down till it was done and read it in about 3 days.some of it was gruesome, but not overly erotic at all, I'm sure anyone who has had a lover would not bat an eyelash.i brought this book second hand, and if i had to id buy another one just to have a copy. if you liked this book i highly recommend his other novel 'human traces' hes not afraid to attack issues that other people are more comfortable sweeping under the carpet

Not a page turner for me. The whole grand-daughter part should not have been included as it added nothing except an invitation for hollywood to step in someday. On the whole, even though it should have been shorter I cannot ignore the fact that it is a moving book and shows aspects of what the soldiers had to deal with which were unexpected and I certainly hadn't previously thought of. I have never read a war book before as its not my bag but it was the war parts that gripped me the most. I just had to really stick at it....

This is the 503 page paperback with additional Author Commentary and reading group guide.

I decided to read this book after seeing it in a listing of the top 50 fiction books of all time. We're introduced to the main character Stephen Wraysford as he arrives in France on work duties. The year is 1910 and he is a young man staying in the home of a textile factory boss. The book is basically about Stephen's first world war experiences, encompassing views from other ranks and tunnel diggers, all written in a beautifully stark way.
The story later becomes relived in a time shift to his granddaughter, trying to discover more of this forgotten man. This brings the wartime experience closer to the reader, forming a strange ignorant alliance, as we follow time back into those unfortunate hellish lives.

I did have some gripes with reading the book as a whole. I found the first Part rather awkward, with some characters seeming unnecessarily vivid against our main character, though they play little purpose in the story. This section is needed for the book, but when taken in context it is too long and alienates the reader slightly.

The second Part of the book takes us straight into Stephen's Army trench war. Here the reader is offered explicit scenes of daily life, from the almost welcome distraction of rats and petrol infused tea, to the fear of each individual soldier amid the death and chaos. The Author details an incredible picture of humanity lost in war. The mass slaughter of men too obscene to comprehend. Somehow the bloody details are unimportant as the reader searches for some kind of comparison with which to evaluate. The horrors clearly unspeakable even to those who witnessed them. There are numerous letters home from the men, retaining some kind of lifeline and sanity for them as they fight on. The tunnel scenes provide another nauseating fear, offering another chance to play at death and destruction. There is the occasional sanctuary of a weekend pass, allowing the author to show the war ravaged soldiers altered and numb. In many ways it is these breaks from the front that reveal the broken nature of these men.

The final Part details the modern day discovery of his diaries and his Granddaughters search for information. Again there are too many small and needless details here, leaving the reader disinterested after the incredible story highs of the war.

It's hard to rate this as a piece of fiction as it's much more than that. This is a book of great impact, so perhaps not for the light reader. It's hard not to despair at it all, and yet i feel better for reading it, like i found out something everyone needs to know. I'm left with visions of shell holes and barbed wire fences, muddy fields scattered with nameless uniformed men, and the blue skyed saviour of fresh air. Well when you're not being shelled atleast.

Quite special.

I found this book truly outstanding the writing was superb, the graphic description of trench life is riveting and i find it amazing that it is written by someone who did not serve in the trenches it really is that believable. Interwoven with a love story and a main character you will not forget and will seriously become attached to i feel it is a must for any book lover.

I've read Birdsong twice. It totally consumed me both times.

The character of Stephen in Sebastian Faulks Birdsong is one of the best characters written! I felt truly attached to him throughout the novel. The book grabs you and touches all of your senses, and you feel everything Stephen is going through. When he is trapped in the tunnel you feel as though you are there with him in the tiny space, and you feel his claustrophobia and his sense of what seems to be his impending death.

Birdsong is one of the few novels in which you are there living the life of the character. It is an enthralling tale of a man who has lost his love, and who never recovers from the heartbreak.

I tried, but I just couldn't love this novel. Everytime I got really engrossed by the characters in Sebastian Faulks' Birdsong and the plot, there was a sudden shift in time and I had to start all over again working out what was going on. I was left feeling dissatisfied each time and it made for a very disjointed read.