 First edition cover | |
| Author | Erich Maria Remarque |
|---|---|
| Original title | Im Westen nichts Neues |
| Translator |
|
| Illustrator | Carl Laemmle |
| Cover artist | Erich Maria Remarque |
| Language | German |
| Genre | War novel |
| Set in | Western Front and Germany, 1916–18 |
| Publisher | Propyläen Verlag |
Publication date | 29 January 1929 |
| Publication place | Germany |
Published in English | Little, Brown and Company, 1929 |
| Pages | 250 |
| 833.912 | |
| LC Class | PT2635.E68 |
| Followed by | The Road Back |
All Quiet on the Western Front (German: Im Westen nichts Neues, lit. 'In the West, nothing new') is a semi-autobiographical novel by Erich Maria Remarque, a German veteran of World War I. The book describes the German soldiers' extreme physical and mental trauma during the war as well as the detachment from civilian life felt by many upon returning home from the war. It is billed by some as "the greatest war novel of all time".[1]
The novel was first published in November and December 1928 in the German newspaper Vossische Zeitung and in book form in late January 1929. The book and its sequel, The Road Back (1931), were among the books banned and burned in Nazi Germany. All Quiet on the Western Front sold 2.5 million copies in 22 languages in its first 18 months in print.[2]
Three film adaptations of the book have been made, each of which was lauded. The 1930 American adaptation, directed by Lewis Milestone, won two Academy Awards. The 1979 British-American adaptation, a television film by Delbert Mann, won a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. The 2022 German adaptation, directed by Edward Berger, won four Academy Awards.
The book entered the public domain in the United States in 2024, with the 1930 film adaptation set to do so in 2026.[3][4]
- ^ 1987 English-language version, ISBN 9780812415032
- ^ Eksteins, Modris (April 1980). "All Quiet on the Western Front and the Fate of a War". Journal of Contemporary History. 15 (2). SAGE Publications: 353. doi:10.1177/002200948001500207. S2CID 159998295.
- ^ "Public Domain Day 2024 | Duke University School of Law". web.law.duke.edu.
- ^ Hirtle, Peter B. (January 3, 2020). "Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the United States". Cornell University Library Copyright Information Center. Retrieved December 17, 2020.