"Regeneration" by Pat Barker

I recently finished reading "Regeneration" by Pat Barker, part of another "slow readalong" with Simon Haisell at Footnotes & Tangents. It's mostly set at Craiglockhart War Hospital near Edinburgh, Scotland,  in 1917, where Dr. William Rivers (a real-life historical figure) is treating traumatized soldiers, including (real-life) war poets Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. Today we'd say they were suffering from PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder);  back then, they were labelled "shell-shocked."  

It's Rivers's job to treat his patients and make them well enough to be sent back to the front to continue fighting  (!). Rivers mostly uses talk therapy, in contrast with his colleague Lewis Yealland, whose methods are detailed in a wince-inducing chapter near the end of the book that reminded me a little of the dental chair scene in the movie "Marathon Man" with Lawrence Olivier and Dustin Hoffman.  (IYKYK -- no dental equipment is involved, but be forewarned...!)  

Graphically described primitive treatment methods aside, there's a lot in this book that I liked and enjoyed.  Although the main characters are all male, I was pleasantly surprised to find women's perspectives featured, particularly through the character of Sarah Lumb, who works in a munitions factory. 

And, as usual, Simon's "footnotes and tangents," and the comments and observations of other readers, added a lot to my enjoyment and understanding of the novel.  I particularly enjoyed the YouTube clips Simon posted of well-known actors reading some of the war poetry mentioned in the book. The poetry was an unexpected highlight:  I was familiar with Owen's classic "Dulce et Decorum Est," thanks to my wonderful high school English teachers, and I'd heard of Sassoon, but hadn't read any of his work before. Still powerful stuff.  

"Regeneration" is the first book in a trilogy featuring some of the same characters. Simon says we'll probably read them both eventually on F&T, and I will look forward to that!  This was my first Pat Barker book, and I would definitely like to read some of her other work. (I did not realize at first that "Pat" was actually "Patricia" and not "Patrick!" -- give me a demerit on my feminist membership card, lol.)  

After some thought, I've given this one 4 stars on both Goodreads and StoryGraph.  

Next up at Footnotes & Tangents:  "The Inheritors" by William Golding, beginning June 5th and running through to the end of the month. (Not sure I'll be joining this one.)

This was Book #9 read to date in 2026 (and Book #1 of 2 finished to date in May -- one more to come). You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2026 tagged as "2026 books."