Among the few important novels which have survived since the end of World War One, The Enormous Room still holds a distinguished place in American fiction. Although it reveals the filth and futility of war pitilessly, it is not essentially a war novel; it is, rather, an affirmation of the aspirations and an interpretation of the thwartings of young men confronted by the fierce reality of battle, the taut periods of preparation for conflict and the grim aftermath of trial by fire. Written with imagination and sensibility, The Enormous Room is a novel spontaneous in realism and rewarding in insights into the enduring spirit of youth.