Storm of Steel

(Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)

Illustrated by Neil Gower
Foreword by Karl Marlantes
Introduction by Michael Hofmann
Translated by Michael Hofmann
Look inside
One of the great war memoirs, published here in a stunning Deluxe Edition for the centenary of World War I and the Battle of the Somme—and featuring a foreword by the New York Times bestselling author of Matterhorn
 
A worldwide bestseller published shortly after the end of World War I, Storm of Steel is a memoir of astonishing power, savagery, and ashen lyricism. It illuminates not only the horrors but also the fascination of total war, as seen through the eyes of an ordinary German soldier.

Young, tough, patriotic, but also disturbingly self-aware, Ernst Jünger exulted in the Great War, which he saw not just as a great national conflict but also—more importantly—as a unique personal struggle. Leading raiding parties, defending trenches against murderous British incursions, simply enduring as shells tore his comrades apart, Jünger keeps testing himself, braced for the death that will mark his failure. His account is ripe for rediscovery upon the centennial of the Battle of the Somme—a major set piece in Storm of Steel—and a bracing read for fans of Redeployment and American Sniper.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Ernst Jünger (1895–1998) was born in Heidelberg. He ran away from school and volunteered to join the German army. Fighting throughout the war, he recorded his experiences in several books, most famously in In Stahlgewittern (Storm of Steel). View titles by Ernst Junger
  • WINNER
    Oxford Weidenfeld Prize
“An articulate, often beautifully so, introduction to the world view of a different breed of man: the born warrior.” —Karl Marlantes, author of Matterhorn, from the Foreword

“The definitive World War I account from the German point of view.” —Margaret Atwood, Entertainment Weekly

Storm of Steel is what so many books claim to be but are not: a classic account of war.” —London Evening Standard
 
“Extraordinary . . . Michael Hofmann’s superlative translation retains all the coruscating vitality of the original.” —Niall Ferguson, author of Civilization, Colossus, and The Ascent of Money

About

One of the great war memoirs, published here in a stunning Deluxe Edition for the centenary of World War I and the Battle of the Somme—and featuring a foreword by the New York Times bestselling author of Matterhorn
 
A worldwide bestseller published shortly after the end of World War I, Storm of Steel is a memoir of astonishing power, savagery, and ashen lyricism. It illuminates not only the horrors but also the fascination of total war, as seen through the eyes of an ordinary German soldier.

Young, tough, patriotic, but also disturbingly self-aware, Ernst Jünger exulted in the Great War, which he saw not just as a great national conflict but also—more importantly—as a unique personal struggle. Leading raiding parties, defending trenches against murderous British incursions, simply enduring as shells tore his comrades apart, Jünger keeps testing himself, braced for the death that will mark his failure. His account is ripe for rediscovery upon the centennial of the Battle of the Somme—a major set piece in Storm of Steel—and a bracing read for fans of Redeployment and American Sniper.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Author

Ernst Jünger (1895–1998) was born in Heidelberg. He ran away from school and volunteered to join the German army. Fighting throughout the war, he recorded his experiences in several books, most famously in In Stahlgewittern (Storm of Steel). View titles by Ernst Junger

Awards

  • WINNER
    Oxford Weidenfeld Prize

Praise

“An articulate, often beautifully so, introduction to the world view of a different breed of man: the born warrior.” —Karl Marlantes, author of Matterhorn, from the Foreword

“The definitive World War I account from the German point of view.” —Margaret Atwood, Entertainment Weekly

Storm of Steel is what so many books claim to be but are not: a classic account of war.” —London Evening Standard
 
“Extraordinary . . . Michael Hofmann’s superlative translation retains all the coruscating vitality of the original.” —Niall Ferguson, author of Civilization, Colossus, and The Ascent of Money

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