Arch of TriumphArch of Triumph
Score Classic
What it's about
Paris, 1939. Ravic, a German surgeon who fled the Nazis, lives as a refugee without papers, secretly performing operations for less skillful French doctors while dodging the police and deportation. He meets Joan Madou, a struggling actress, and falls into a love affair, while waiting for the chance to take revenge on the Gestapo officer who tortured him, as war approaches.
Why it's worth reading
It spent eight weeks at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and was one of the ten best-selling books of 1946. It's Remarque's great novel of exile, from the author of All Quiet on the Western Front.
You'll love it if you liked
All Quiet on the Western Front
For Whom the Bell Tolls
The NightingaleGood to know
It's atmospheric and melancholy, full of Paris nights and calvados. The love story and the revenge plot run side by side.
By the numbers
- Readers94 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller43 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
Why it made the list
Reads as
Uplifting, Moving
More by Erich Maria Remarque
All Quiet on the Western Front
The Road BackIf you like this, read next
From Here to Eternity
Middlemarch
Memoirs of Hadrian
Anna Karenina
Katherine
G.Explore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is Arch of Triumph worth reading?
Yes. It spent eight weeks at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and was one of the ten best-selling books of 1946. It ranks #586 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 77.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Arch of Triumph about?
Paris, 1939. Ravic, a German surgeon who fled the Nazis, lives as a refugee without papers, secretly performing operations for less skillful French doctors while dodging the police and deportation. He meets Joan Madou, a struggling actress, and falls into a love affair, while waiting for the chance to take revenge on the Gestapo officer who tortured him, as war approaches.
How long does it take to read Arch of Triumph?
About 14 hours (545 pages), or about 4 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Arch of Triumph?
If you liked it, try All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque, For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway or The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.