The Soldier's Song

The Soldier's Song Trilogy #1

by Alan Monaghan

A haunting and elegaic novel of the First World War

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, War, Historical, 20th Century, World War I, Ireland

306 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Val]

My grandfather and his elder brother were Irish Catholics who fought for the British army in the Great War, one on the Western Front and one at Gallipoli. Neither went to university, although both were good scholars and mathematicians. My grandfather was a socialist and would have supported James Connolly. (I don't know my great-uncle's politics as he died before I was born.) They had wartime romances.
I wanted to connect with and enjoy this book; I didn't. The writing is rather leaden, the narrative is disjointed and I think the author has crammed so many of the issues affecting early twentieth century life into the mix that the book loses focus. There is the class system, women's suffrage, homosexuality, opposition to Home Rule by those who don't want it and those who don't think it goes far enough, access to higher education and, of course, the war. The characters are not strong enough to carry all this baggage. The author has made a good attempt to write historical fiction set an a turbulent time, but unfortunately I don't think he has succeeded.

[Debbie Robson]

If you have never considered reading a novel set in World War I you should make an exception for "The Soldier’s Song". The novel is written in a beautifully clean flowing style with exciting tense passages where the main character is of course in danger of losing his life. But as result of Monaghan’s meticulous research, the narrative never loses it’s credibility.
Stephen Ryan is Irish and early in the war he joins up with the British Army whilst his brother, always the rebel is fighting against the government.

There are clashes of course and the passage dealing with the rebellion in Dublin also add historical colour. But for me it’s the sections in The Soldier’s Song where Ryan is targeting a sniper, going over the top in no man’s land or with the engineer’s tunnelling deep down into the earth that Monaghan’s writing really shines. His pacing is exceptional and he knows how to make the most of each scene. The Soldier’s Song is unputtdownable and this is no mean feat when it comes to portraying the First World War accurately! Highly recommended.

[Judith Paterson]

Interesting tale of WWI; but perhaps pushing credulity a bit far that one soldier would survive Gallipoli, be in Dublin for the Easter Rising, serve in France, be transferred to a tunnelling unit, then back to infantry, survive another major injury and then be examined by a famous doctor from Craiglochart. It then seems to end quickly without real resolution.
The style is quite restrained and does use letters in places.
A good read and I will read the next novel in the series

[Kathryn Price]

I listened to this as an audio book.
It started a bit slow for me and I wasn't at all convinced about the 'romantic' aspect of the story - it almost seemed as if it was an add on for the author.
I was disappointed in the non character development of some of the characters in the story, especially the protagonists brother and friend.

I really enjoyed the setting of the backdrop of political situation in Ireland and the way in which the protagonist had various roles fighting in various arenas of WWI meant a broad understanding of the battles and described very well.

I enjoyed it more as the book went on. To begin with I wanted it to hurry up but in the latter half of the book I was genuinely interested in what was going to happen next and eager to find out.

[Sally Hirst]

The story of Stephen Ryan who joins the British Army from an Irish family in world war one. He has a brother involved in the uprising, a deft touch with maths and an extraordinary amount of luck. Descriptions of the uprising in Dublin, the front in Turkey and the tunnelling near the end of world war one are all action packed and the characters are mostly likeable, but while it is an easy read there is too much in there and so no depth to any of it. Justice is usually done, fault lines patched over and while it is entertaining in the moment, I suspect it will not prove memorable.

[E J DeBarr]

The Soldiers Song.

Enjoyed the book and very much looking forward to reading the next one in the series. It never ceases to amaze me the bravery of the young men who served in the First World War. Highly recommended.

[Matthew Charles]

Great read. Brings WW1 into perspective

[Dylan]

Did I finish this book the very day I got it? Yes, yes, I did. Not the best prose in the world or the most imaginative storyline but this was very addictive and entertaining, to say the least.

[Anni Mcl]

this book is good in the sense that it goes into the psychology of how war affects people but the way it is written is not as smooth as other books

[Nicki]

This is a well-written, thoughtful book. There's no storyline as such other than following Stephen Ryan, a working class Dublin boy, through four years of his life. Those four years are more dramatic than most though.

Stephen is a gifted mathematician, earning a scholarship to Trinity College, but when the First World War breaks out, he enrols through the university as an officer in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, much to the disgust of his nationalist brother.

The story follows Stephen through training to the hell of Gallipoli, where he and his men fight against the Turks. Evacuated as one of the walking wounded, Stephen finds himself back in Dublin just in time for the Easter Rising. As an officer in the British Army, he's on the opposing side to his brother, Joe.

Calm, unflappable, brave Stephen also sees action on the Western Front, earning a medal for gallantry, becoming involved in the huge tunnelling operation under the Messines Ridge and slogging through the mud of 1917.

But war is hell and Alan Monaghan paints a visceral picture of it. The battle scenes are brutal, the mundanity of trench life horrific, the loss of life, limbs and sanity heart-wrenching. Stephen Ryan is a solid character, holding the tale together. He's a safe pair of hands, but not dull. He's a man who gets on with what he has to do, even when every fibre of his being screams against the senselessness of it all.

If you're interested in the First World War, give this book a go. It's worth it.

[Sam Woodfield]

I really loved this novel! When I started reading this book I was worried that it would be abit of a slog and not my thing at all. However, I now believe this is a book for anyone!

It's a truly poignant and real novel about the true nature of the first world war. During the story, Stephen Ryan (around who the story is based) is exposed to all areas of the front line, from going 'over the top' to tunnelling, giving a very rounded insight into the conditions faced during the war. It also provides very real insight into the thoughts of those involved and places some focus on other domestic issues occurring during the war effort, which are often overlooked in other novels of this genre.

Some have commented on the ending of this novel, and although I agree that it is slightly lacking, it is worth noting that this is part of the 'Soldier' series which will publish a book a year, so this ending may be planned for that reason. I look forward to reading Monaghan's future offerings to discover if this is the case (and in the hope the coming novels are as good as this).

For lovers of Sebastian Faulks or Pat Barker's 'Regeneration' trilogy, this is a book for them

[Gerry]

The story is about Stephen Ryan, a maths student from Dublin and follows his life from the start of the first world war when he volunteers and becomes an officer in a Dublin regiment.


I was warned it would be about family conflict around the Easter Uprising because so many are. It wasn't.


It's a love story that so rings true it is beyond belief. It is about family in conflict during war. It is about stress and trauma on the battlefield. It is about 'bravery' whatever that actually is.


This book was a brilliant book. It was compelling to read as well as easy to read.



The story takes Stephen from conflict to conflict while at the same time building a bond between himself and his younger brother and finds this shy, if not aspergic, individual falling for Lillian, a student at the same university before the war. It exposes Stephen to about every form of shock and trauma that the war could throw at him in an effort to try to get the reader to understand the full horror that a war can create.


I cannot recommend this book highly enough and if it doesn't make the best seller lists for 2010 then there is no justice. Please, Please try this book.

[Helen Albert]

I thought this was an excellent book. It is set in Ireland just before the outbreak of the First World War and centres on the life of Stephen Ryan a student of mathematics at Trinity College in Dublin who volunteers to fight for England following the outbreak of war.

The story follows him to Turkey and then the trenches in Europe and gives an interesting insight into the sheer scale and the physical and emotional effect of the war both on those fighting on the front line and those left behind in Ireland.

The Dublin rebellion and its aftermath are also covered, which I found interesting, not knowing a great deal about Irish history. Lillian Bryce, Stephen’s love interest, is also a great character.

I’m not generally a huge admirer of war related books, and was put off by the reference to Sebastian Faulks as I’m not a huge fan, so was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed reading this. I would highly recommend it to other readers.

[Vivek]

well written. remarkable for the detail in which the horrors of war are brought out from the eyes of a young man. no too much into the gore, but about the sensations and general feeling of being out there when there is deep turmoil back home and a love waiting for your return.

i felt deep regrets for the men and women who suffered more than just deaths from such horrendous wars. often pain and humiliation resulting from a an injury is insufferable and death would seem to be a better alternative.

truely enjoyable.but rating 3 instead of 4 as I found myself skipping lines ..maybe its my mistake..but somehow i didn't feel like reading and absorbing every single detail of a scene as explained by the author..was more content with the scene running in my mind.

but the last line.. it bloody well made to swear and fret for a while until realized the simple sensibility of the outcome.. truely well done Alan Monaghan!

[Elaine]

The story of an Irish man during WWI. It includes a small amount about his home situation in Ireland at the time, which may be confusing if you are not familiar with Irish history. The rest of the book deals with his war experience and has a touch of romance too.
Its an easy book to read, some of the war experiences are very well written. I do feel that the ending is a little rushed and ties the story off a little too conveniently. Worth a read though.

[Charlotte]

I enjoyed this novel, which is the first in a trilogy (the other two are also worth reading). The author creates likeable and believable characters, even with his hero, Stephen Ryan, who initially comes across as po-faced and fairly humourless, and the great conflict of the Easter Rising is handled sensibly. I'd recommend this series - it's not going to move into the canon of the greatest of world literatures, but it is thought-provoking, well-written and pacy.

[Ian]

Part 1 of a trilogy of Irish historical fiction with a romantic thread entwined. It is set both in Dublin at the time of the Easter Rising and in the trenches of France/Flanders. It was particularly - for me anyway - informative about the former re the devastation of the city and the self defeating British response to it. Looking forward to picking up the story in part 2 - The Soldier's Return

[Mark Fishpool]

This was a great story told from the perspective of a young Irish soldier and his experiences at home and going to fight in the first world war. The characters were interesting and I enjoyed seeing how he coped with both the rebellion in Ireland and the hardship of battle in the trenches. I'm looking forward to the sequel to continue his tale.

[Gary Stocker]

Good story showing how a slightly naive student turning into a battle hardened soldier very quickly. Showed well how survival was as much down to luck as good judgement.

[Paul]

a bit slow to start but turned out to be a good read.

[Noreen]

Good read - will look forward to the sequels.

[Gerry Parle]

Note to self:
this book was recommended by Stephen Donnelly

[Barbara]

not normally the type of book that I would read but I enjoyed every bit of this book