This book could have been so much better if it just explored the relationship between Adam Neve and Konrad Klara more honestly.

The book has an interesting plot: a farmer's servant (Adam) gets falsely enlisted in Napoleon's army to battle the Russians (Adam is mistaken for the farmer's actual son, who is supposed to fight in the war). The unfit-for battle-Adam (because he is underage)travels with a hard-ass who physically abuses him, and then is taken under the wing of a lieutenant, Konrad Klara, who's really a sweet (if not altogether sappy) guy. They become best friends, then become "almost like brothers", etc. The book becomes like a somber Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder buddy flick, except it takes place in wartime, which of course is terrible. Of course the author wants to make it a point that war is horrible, almost to the point where 99 percent of their conversations revolve around how bad war is. "War is terrible" became Konrad Klara's quip of the year followed by incessant crying (from a WAR lieutenant??? REALLY???). The focus should have been more about exploring their relationship a little bit, which to me seemed a little gay. I mean homosexual gay. "I would die for him", "I wanted to embrace him right there on the spot", "I would love to make out with him" (Well, not the last one, but you get what I mean). There was even a couple (like, more than one) chapter in which they are both completely naked. They both go for a swim and their clothes get stolen (or "misplaced" if you know what I mean) and they are wandering around the countryside with nothing on, hugging each other for warmth (this is Russia, after all).

Ummm, if that's not a gay relationship, then I don't know what is.