All Else Is Folly

One of Canada's most painful and breathtaking pictures of a soldier's life during the First World War. Peregrine Acland's novel All Else Is Folly is an irreplaceable depiction of the Canadian experience in the First World War. More than just a devastating portrayal of the terrors and hardships of trench warfare, the novel is also a profound meditation on the nature of man, one that draws on both the Nietzschean notion of man as warrior and Havelock Ellis's idea of man as lover. Subtitled "e;a tale of war and passion,"e; the novel was something of a bestseller in its time and drew significant critical praise. Canadian Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden remarked: "e;No more vivid picture has been painted of what war meant to the average soldier."e; Originally published in 1929, Acland's war story had transatlantic success, with editions published under the Constable imprint in England, and by Coward-McCann and Grosset & Dunlap in the United States. The Canadian edition published by McClelland & Stewart enjoyed three printings. This new edition marks a return to print after more than eight decades.