THE VIRGIN SOLDIERS

by Leslie Thomas ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 23, 1966

The author wrote the well-received This Time Next Week (1964) in which he revealed a comic flair that underlined an unsentimental approach to the pathetic. The same blend is evident here in a book that seems familiar. It hasn't been done before quite this way in just this setting, but it's a form that's been around since Cain killed Abel. This is the misfit soldier novel and the scene is Malaya during the 1948-52 action fought by the British Army, but not this particular company. These are the clerks, close enough to hear but seldom see the actual fighting. The nearest thing to a central character in these barracks is Brigg, just nineteen, not really sure what he's in Malaya for, and writing letters home to his girl Joan and dying to lose his virginity in an area where native women for sale are cheap and girls of his background are rare. Brigg's frustration and confusions lead to moments of high comedy shafted by the horrific accidents of war in an entertainment that has proven appeal for men.

Pub Date: May 23, 1966

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1966

Categories: FICTION