Perhaps it is because it was so simply written from the heart. Perhaps it is because the story has no end. Perhaps it is because we continue to hope the reality of this book will someday sink in.

Whatever the reasons, "All Quiet on the Western Front" by Erich Maria Remarque has remained as one of, if not the one, greatest book about war from those who fight it.

This is the story of young German signing up for World War I, full of the enthusiasm and bravado of young men sent to war by elders.

The painful simplicity of the reality that sets in while crawling in the trenches and watching comrades die is the story as told by this young soldier.

Before World War II, the war that would never happen because Hitler would not dare risk war so soon after World War I, this book was universally read - except perhaps by Hitler and his supporters.

We have since repeated the pains seemingly in one endless war after another. The truths in this book echo on, but who hears?

Three veterans recently remembered:

"As President Obama visits Vietnam, we are struck by the fact that most citizens of both countries have no living memory of a conflict that claimed the lives of more than 58,000 Americans and upward of a million Vietnamese." - John Kerry, John McCain and Bob Kerrey, The New York Times (May 23, 2016)

In reading, we can remember.

"I am very quiet. Let the months and years come, they can take nothing from me, they can take nothing more. I am so alone, and so without hope that I can confront them without fear. "

Are not those words of the World War I shoulder ringing in our heads still today, from the souls of Korea, World War II, Vietnam, and the interminable Middle East conflicts?

That is why this book is still a must read. It is a reminder of what we never seem to remember.

"Older men declare war. But it is youth that must fight and die." - Herbert Hoover

While we all must find our good reads, we all look to reviews and book awards to find a starting point. The American Library Child Service section recently listed some 2016 winners for the young readers.

John Newbery Medal: "Last Stop on Market Street," written by Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson and published by G. P. Putnam's Sons, an imprint of Penguin Books (USA) LLC

Newbery Honor Books: "The War that Saved My Life," written by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley and published by Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Books (USA) LLC; "Roller Girl," written and illustrated by Victoria Jamieson and published by Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Books (USA) LLC; and "Echo," written by Pam Muñoz Ryan and published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.

Randolph Caldecott Medal: "Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear," illustrated by Sophie Blackall, written by Lindsay Mattick and published by Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Caldecott Honor Books: "Trombone Shorty," illustrated by Bryan Collier, written by Troy Andrews and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, an imprint of ABRAMS; "Waiting," illustrated and written by Kevin Henkes, published by Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers: "Voice of Freedom Fannie Lou Hamer Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement," illustrated by Ekua Holmes, written by Carole Boston Weatherford and published by Candlewick Press; and "Last Stop on Market Street," illustrated by Christian Robinson, written by Matt de le Peña and published by G. P. Putnam's Sons, an imprint of Penguin Books (USA) LLC

Laura Ingalls Wilder Award: Jerry Pinkney, whose award-winning works include "The Lion and the Mouse," recipient of the Caldecott Award in 2010. In addition, Pinkney has received five Caldecott Honor Awards, five Coretta Scott King Illustrator Awards and four Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honors.

Gary Thorne is the play-by-play voice of the Orioles on MASN, and the 2016 season is his 10th with the club and 31st covering Major League Baseball. His blog will appear regularly throughout the season. The Orioles and Sarasota County have partnered on the Big League Reader Program, which rewarded kids who read three books in February with tickets to a Grapefruit League game at Ed Smith Stadium in March.

* Hitting the Books with Gary Thorne. © Copyright 2016 Gary F. Thorne. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Gary F. Thorne and MASNsports.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.