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While I’m not a student of the two world wars, that is not the case with the remainder of my book club. So it was no surprise that our last book assignment was All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque. I was rather keen to tuck the book under my belt, actually, as I had never read it, although my children had all read it in high school. Also, it’s good to attack the classics whenever possible and, after all, the front cover of the book assured me that it is “the greatest war book of all time.”

Mike N., a recent addition to our club, had a marvelous idea when he chose the book. He suggested that after we had finished the novel, we would all meet at the National World War I Museum in Kansas City (another first for me), and after a tour we would have our book discussion at the finest Austrian-German restaurant in town, The Grunauer. No arm twisting was needed.

All Quiet on the Western Front is a gripping, fast read – a no-holds-barred look at the literal trenches of modern warfare as it was tossed upon the unsuspecting rural youths of early twentieth century Germany. In it, high school classmates are urged to join the war with promises of honor in battle and adulation at home. What they encounter instead is years in wet, vermin infected trenches, with no hope of glory and little chance of survival. They fight, because not to fight is to perish, yet convinced that even if they are still alive at the armistice, both they and the world will be unrecognizable and potentially irreconcilable. The story of the fighting unit is fast paced, and even the frequent pages of ruminating by Paul Baumer, the soldier-narrator, do not detract from the fascination of the tale. It holds a well-earned spot on the shelves of classic fiction.

The WWI Museum is located just south of downtown Kansas City proper, and it is worth a few hours if you are in town for a ball game or barbecue. It is constructed in a circular fashion, which one enters after an excellent and essential ten-minute introductory film if, like me, you are fairly oblivious to the why’s and where’s of the “war to end all wars.”  A chronology is depicted graphically on the inner part of the circular hall, while the outer wall has displays of small arms, actual mortars and cannon, the numerous technologies of modern warfare, the types of trenches used during battle by the European countries, and several excellent short films that tie together the various war theaters across the globe.

The Grunauer was an excellent choice to get off our feet and enjoy some hearty German fare as we discussed the museum and the book. The Grunauer has an impressive choice of German and Austrian bars on tap, and is known for its array of both brats and schnitzels. Just a few minutes from the museum, its an easy and welcome add-on to a day of European history. They also offer an authentic German coffee service, featuring delicious Melitta coffee. As one who has spent a fair amount of time in German bierhalle, the Grunauer is genuine as your going to find in mid-America.