very gritty. the descriptions of battles etc. are very straight to the point, like there’s no sugar coating to make things seem less horrific. we see how the characters become desensitised to atrocities. they’re not invincible. they’re scared and angry and desperate and tormented. nothing about war is romanticised, which is a refreshing change from a lot of the other books about war i’ve read. it makes you think, “if i were in that situation, i’d never do something like that,” at first. then it makes you question your own principles, just as the characters do. it’s war. it’s horrifying and traumatising, people are unsympathetic and selfish, which is understandable because they’re terrified for their own lives, so to have to worry about thousands of others in the same situation would destroy their minds completely. i could go on about this book aaaaaaaaa the characters are so complex and interesting also i cried a lot reading this.