Robert M. (shotokanchef) reviewed on + 813 more book reviews
This novel follows his post WW I novels "The Road Back" and "Three Comrades." In "Flotsam," told with all the realism of his prior works, he bridges the gap with the tribulations of the pre WWII refuges. His characters are truly the âflotsamâ of Central Europe. Expelled from Germany for political reasons, they wander from country to country seeking refuge only to be expelled time and again as unwanted. More than âflotsamââthe refuse from the eventual wreckage of the ship of state of Germanyâthey are the âJetsamââthe deliberate castings of those deemed unwanted and undesirable by a captain and crew that are steeped in bias and hatred. This is a theme to be repeated to some degree in subsequent novels. Yet, in spite of all of the deprivation, squalor, and heartbreak, the author manages to inject his usual biting raillery and a profound sense for the arts. "All Quiet on the Western Front" may be his most famous workâpartly due to its ironic endingâbut his true genius shines in his novels about the civilians who are trapped between and during the wars: stories that ring true not only for wartime Europe, but today particularly in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
