'For two months the unfinished structure had stood in the snow like a grey skeleton, just as it had been left. And now the 104th had arrived. What was it that kept their spirits up? Empty bellies, fastened tight with belts of rope! A splitting frost! Not a warm corner, not a spark of fire! But the 104th had arrived – and life had come back to the building.'
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
(Page 61)
This is a disturbing book.
And not because it's a story of war.
But because it's the story of a quotidian man and his mundane fight to survive.
There are no bombs in this story.
No trenches.
No mention of the monsters that lead men into these inexplicable battles.
There is death.
But the kind that occurs over time inside a cell.
For no other reason than wearing an extra layer of clothing or walking alone within the prison camps.
'The horrors of war', they say.
These are the quiet horrors of men who were given no choice.
This is a disturbing book.
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