num_pages: 186
description: One of the finest war novels ever written, Bridge on the River Kwai tells the story of three POWs who endure the hell of the Japanese camps on the Burma-Siam railway - Colonel Nicholson, a man prepared to sacrifice his life but not his dignity; Major Warden, a modest hero, saboteur and deadly killer; Commander Shears, who escaped from hell but was ordered back. Ordered by the Japanese to build a bridge, the Colonel refuses, as it is against regulations for officers to work with other ranks. The Japanese give way but, to prove a point of British superiority, construction of the bridge goes ahead - at great cost to the men under Nicholson's command.
language: English
title: The Bridge On the River Kwai
titlecomplete: The Bridge On the River Kwai
genres: Fiction, Classics, France, World War II, Historical, War, Asia, Historical Fiction, Military Fiction, Novels
ratings_count: 9481
places: Myanmar, Burma
awards: awardedAt: -568051200000
name: Prix Sainte-Beuve
publisher: VINTAGE (RAND)