Lamb to the Slaughter [Hardcover]

Jan Montyn (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Dutch (translation)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 251 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; First edition (February 20, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670803766
• ISBN-13: 978-0670803767
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,043,800 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Living on the edge... of chaos and order, and no way out!, February 11, 2005

By 

M. B. T. Kaal (Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lamb to the Slaughter (Hardcover)

The whistle of the first motar you hear will be your reference for the rest of your life to either stay calm or duck like no tomorrow, when you see the horsefeet upsidedown in the snow you know that means no food today... friendly and enemy mortars aiming for the dying soldiers in nomans land just to get rid of the horrifying deathcries... in short it's hell... and if you survive hell that many times u'll prolly need hell to survive normal life... Great story told in a vivid way!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shocking, emotional account of war and life, April 30, 2006

By 

A reader (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Lamb to the Slaughter: An Artist Among the Battlefields (Paperback)

The author of this book was a Dutch boy who joined the German army to escape the boredom and constraints of everyday life. He is not a politically motivated Nazi, just a restless boy who wants to see the world, and throughout his life, he does. This book only begins with this man's harrowing experiences in WWII. From there, it moves on to his wild post-war life which includes brushes with insanity, tumultuous love relationships with people of both sexes, and his eventual career as an artist. He also spends a period working as a social worker with emotionally damaged children in Southeast Asia, and eventually marries a woman of Asian descent. There are no limits to this book; it's a rollercoaster of action and emotion. Regardless of what you might think about Jan Monteyn after reading this book, you will have to admit that he lived his life to the fullest.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best war and live story ever!, January 31, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Lamb to the Slaughter (Hardcover)

A biography with the character of a fictional story, exceptional well written by D.J. Kooiman. Jan Montyn, a Dutch man now living in Amsterdam as a painter, joins as a young boy the German army in the beginning of the second world war. He does not joins the army because of the political situation but he is looking for adventure. He wanted to get out of the paralysing habits he was living. The first oppertunity to get out was with the Young German Army. The consequence of that choice he has to bear throughout his live are incredible and unbelieveble. It's an breathtaking ramble through modern history, from the trenches at the Eastfront to the Napalmbombardments in Vietnam. The beauty of the book is that you are living with Jan Montyn and want him to survive the physical and mental wars he is in. Always looking for adventure, quitte or double. Short sentences:
- You win some, you lose some, but you keep on
fighting
- Live can only be understood backwards, but must be
lived forwards, may your live see the dawn.