Red Badge of Courage
Stephen Crane

A bad book is a bad book regardless of minor redeeming qualities. The Red Badge of Courage is a bad book. I started reading Crane's Civil War novel several years ago. I put it down because of foul language. I picked it up again and tried to slog through it. I didn't make it all the way through this time, either.

I know that soldiers use crude language. Sam Watkins' Co. Aytch, my favorite Civil War book, contains some authentic quotations, too. But Red Badge does not have the richness, humor, and faith that Watkins put into his autobiography. This book primarily examines the psychological state of one soldier before and during one battle. It was grim and dull and disappointing.

Maybe I'm not sophisticated enough to grasp his point. I know Stephen Crane had a short, rough life. I'm sorry for him, but I don't have to share in his depressing work.