The Immersion Library

and Bagger, already weighed down in mud and blood, further heaves in the dreary certainty that the shriek won’t ever end, just like the war won’t ever end, like the carnage won’t ever end, it’s a sentence in a book careening without periods, gasping with too many commas, a sentence that, once begun, can’t ever be stopped, a sentence doomed to loop back on itself to form a terrible black wheel that, sooner or later, will drag each and every person to their grave,

One must compartmentalize the visceral vocabulary and cynical tone of this book from the meaning imparted through supernatural extremes. One must remain open to the duality of World War I realism and the contrast of an ethereal and miraculous angel within the natural world. Let yourself ask the question, “Is a heavenly angel in No Man’s Land any more unbelievable than the hellish destruction men caused in the War to End All Wars?” One must entertain the effect of this merged dualism; not as an academic evaluation of the nature or future of mankind and the world, but as an empirical condition of a soldier bleeding out into the state of life.

Ultimately, the read is amazing, the pure act of it. Kraus’ language choices, his pacing, his tone, and his creative form. With a refreshing boldness, Kraus embraces a cynicism which cuts much quicker to the truth of his subject. I had to catch my breath at times.

As intended, I find Bagger contemptible. And the characterizations of his companions resound with equal depth. And yet Bagger’s journey challenges my expectations of the traditional protagonist in that, while he grows, I don’t think he necessarily changes. As opposed to teaching Bagger how to change, these fantastic episodes expose the suppressed elements of his nature. While we may sympathize with his background, we must choose to either commend his constancy or reprimand him for not changing. Ironically, the best in his humanity catalyzes the cataclysm of mankind.

And who is the angel? They can be a symbol of humanity’s best nature as well as their worst. But what does this mean? Why do we care to evaluate this duality? While soldiers exhibit their worst nature through their butchery, the angel confronts them with the purity of what they can be; a purity that must be rescued and saved. Yet they also wield a terrible power over all things by subverting natural laws and motivating conflict. Consider the horrible things Bagger’s companions do in the name of protecting or loving the angel; who can also be a teacher. Why would such a powerful supernatural being play the role of a helpless and vulnerable victim? Perhaps to teach the soldiers their responsibility in caring for and nurturing their better natures. The sacrifices required, the pain and suffering confronted, the strength to endure. The angel can be a trickster; making deals with Bagger, supplicating their power to the whims of a flawed man while maintaining control through contract.

Or the angel is a soldier, one following orders from their general, fighting against his own creation who ate the fruit and declared war against him. A creation who marches toward the ultimate destruction of everything. A rebellious uprising against paradise, which may actually win at the end of the world while they relish their victory at the expense of their existence. But we would pay anything to save the dualism of our humanity, banish the general and his army so we can continue to fight for our way of life. To reach the pinnacle of human suffering and say “This is just the beginning!” Plant trees with bullets and continue creation’s reformation.

The inevitability of it. The contrasting dualism of our nature, of creation, of intent, of power, of control; governed by one package term of humanity that, God help us, we will never relinquish.