The Return of the Soldier
by Rebecca Westliterary work· published 1918
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The Return of the Soldier is the debut novel of English novelist Rebecca West, first published in 1918. The novel recounts the return of the shell shocked Captain Chris Baldry from the trenches of the World War I from the perspective of his cousin Jenny. The novel grapples with the soldier's return from the war with mental trauma and its effects on the family, as well as the light it sheds on their fraught relationships. Though initially reviewed by critics, literary scholars treating West's work tended to focus on her later novels and dismissed The Return of the Soldier until the end of the twentieth century and beginning of the twenty-first. The novel was adapted into a film of the same name in 1982, and later into a stage musical of the same name in 2014 by Charles Miller.
Adaptations (1)
The Return of the Soldier was adapted into a 1982 film.
The Return of the Soldier1982 · film · 99 min · dir. Alan Bridges · IMDb ↗IMDb6.7The horrors of World War I have robbed returning veteran Chris Baldry of his memory. The traumatized soldier doesn't even recognize his own wife, Kitty, or remember their years together. While Baldry attempts to cope with the unfamiliar surroundings of his own home, he seeks out the company of an old flame from his childhood, Margaret Grey. His amnesia also makes him a ready target for the affections of his older cousin, Jenny.
