Hello /r/AskHistorians.
One of my students is currently writing a history essay on how accurate 'All Quiet on the Western Front' was as a film. She wants to focus on the film's depiction of the life of a German soldier. As such, I'm trying to help her by suggesting books that describe what life was really like for the soldiers. There are a number of great books on the war but most seem to focus on the key events. Now we have a lot of basic info about life in the trenches and the strain of warfare, etc, but I was wondering if you could recommend some books on the subject to help round out the essay. So far we have Ring of Steel by Watson and A world undone: The story of the Great War by Meyer.
I would appreciate any reliable sources, books or otherwise, that can help provide information on this topic.
Thank you
Storm of Steel, by Ernst Junger, could be a perfect source for her. It's a written account from a German veteran of the first world war.
It isn't a book, but you might refer your student to Otto Dix's excellent paintings and drawings depicting the lives of the soldiers engaging in trench warfare. It is really moving stuff.
An easily accessible book is Peter Englund's The Beauty and the Sorrow: An Intimate History of the First World War which is divided into more than 200 short chapters following individual soldiers, civilians etc. during the First World War. Several German soldiers and civilians are profiled in the book and is worth looking into for the life of a German soldier.