There are two English translations of Ernst Juenger's Storm of Steel: Basil Creighton's of 1929 (London: Chatto and Windus) and Michael Hofmann' s of 2004 (London: Penguin). Their differences are not only the result of seven decades of literary, linguistic and social history but also due to the fact that they are based on radically different-yet equally astonishing-texts. 'Deserting into war' in an attempt to escape from oppressive Imperial society, Ernst Juenger, a 19-year-old volunteer profoundly uninterested in nationalism, soon distinguished himself as both an audacious warrior and, with time, a capable and beloved Fuehrer. Having fought in the battle of the Somme, Operation Michael (Germany's last-ditch effort to win the war) and been wounded 14 times over the course of the war, Juenger was soon recognized for his heroic efforts. Along with only 684 other German soldiers and officers, he was awarded the Pour le Merite, Prussia's highest order of merit.
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