Letter to My Daughter by George Bishop

Almost 4 years ago,when I first started posting about the books I'd read, I stated, "I want to start keeping track of the books I read and whether I liked them or not. I won't be writing formal reviews or anything, because I'm not that good at reviews."  I still feel like I'm not that good at reviews, but my posts have somehow evolved into just that.  It's become one more obligation that I sometimes don't have time for.  And because I'm behind in posting reviews just like I'm behind in everything else right now, I'm going to do 3 quick catch up posts about 3 books I've finished recently.

A mother (Laura) writes a letter to her 15 year old daughter (Liz) after Liz runs away from home.  She describes her own adolescence in the hope that it will bring them closer together.  The book is the letter, and it definitely had the feel of a letter written by an anxious mother to a daughter who's just run away.  I enjoyed the book and rated it 4 out of 5.

Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien

Cacciato, a private, goes AWOL in 1968 Vietnam to walk 8,000 miles to Paris.  The rest of his squad goes after him.  The events get more and more absurd as it goes along, until you really wonder what is real and what isn't.  It is told from the point of view of Paul Berlin, one of the soldiers in Cacciato's squad.  I wasn't sure whether I was going to like it at first, but I did.  It probably took me longer to figure out what was really going on than it should have, but it was well written, and I rate it 4 out of 5.  It is my 6th book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge.  This long quote explained why Paul Berlin let himself go to war, and it really resonated with me:

"Not because of strong convictions, but because he didn't know.  He didn't know who was right. or what was right; he didn't know if it was a war of self-determination or self-destruction, outright aggression or national liberation; he didn't know which speeches to believe, which books, which politicians; he didn't know if nations would topple like dominoes or stand separate like trees; he didn't know who really started the war, or why, or when, or with what motives; he didn't know if it mattered; he saw sense in both sides of the debate, but he did not know where truth lay; he didn't know if communist tyranny would prove worse in the long run than the tyrannies of Ky or Thieu or Khanh -- he simply didn't know.  And who did?   Who really did?  Oh, he had read newspapers and magazines.  He wasn't stupid.  He wasn't uninformed.  He just didn't know if the war was right or wrong or somewhere in the murky middle.  And who did?  Who really knew?  So he went to the war for reasons beyond knowledge.  Because he believed in law, and law told him to go.  Because it was a democracy, after all, and because LBJ and the others had a rightful claim to their offices.  He went to the war because it was expected.  Because not to go was to risk censure, and to bring embarrassment on his father and his town.  Because, not knowing, he saw no reason to distrust those with more experience.  Because he loved his country and, more than that, because he trusted it." (pg. 264)

Paco's Story by Larry Heinemann

Paco was the only survivor of a massacre at Fire Base Harriette, a location that was supposed to be safe.  He is left for dead for 2 days before he is found by a medic from another company.  Once Paco returns to the US, he takes a bus as far as his money will take him, ending up in a small town in Texas.  He gets a job as a dishwasher, working for a WWII veteran.  He is haunted by his memories of Vietnam and the ghosts of his dead comrades.  We don't learn anything about what Paco was like before the war or whether he had any family or friends to return to.  It is a very disturbing story about how badly returning soldiers were treated and how little support there was for them.  This was my 5th book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge, and my 14th book for the New Author Challenge 2010.  I rated this book 3 out of 5.

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

The Things They Carried is a set of related short stories, most of them about the author's service in the Vietnam War.  Many of the same characters appeared in the stories, but each story could stand alone (although they were related enough that you wanted to read all of them).  My favorite story was On the Rainy River which told about the author receiving his draft notice and struggling with the decision of whether to report for duty or go to Canada.  Many people believe that going to Canada was the cowardly way out, but I've always believed that it took great courage to leave behind your home, family, friends, your entire way of life, knowing you could never return.  This story showed just how difficult a decision that was for young men during this time in our history.

In Spin, the author states:

"Forty-three years old, and the war occurred half a lifetime ago, and yet remembering makes it now.  And sometimes remembering will lead to a story, which makes it forever.  That's what stories are for.  Stories are for joining the past to the future.  Stories are for those late hours in the night when you can't remember how you got from where you were to where you are.  Stories are for eternity, when memory is erased, when there is nothing to remember except the story."

And in Good Form, the author explains the differences between "happening-truth" and "story-truth.

I haven't read very many books about Vietnam, but of those I've read, Tim O'Brien is my favorite author.  This is my 4th book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge.  I rate this book 5 out of 5.

Fatal Light by Richard Currey

The narrator (a high school senior) receives his draft notice in 1967 and must report for duty as soon as he graduates.  He becomes a medic in Vietnam.  The book is short (fewer than 200 pages).  It isn't a traditional novel with beginning, middle, and end; it is a series of very short chapters that are snippets of the narrator's life.  But it is well written and the structure works.  This is my 3rd book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge and my 11th book for the New Author Challenge 2010.  I rate this book 3 out of 5.

The Unwanted by Kien Nguyen

Kien Nguyen is the son of a Vietnamese woman and an American serviceman.  He was 8 years old when he and his family watched the last US helicopter leave Vietnam without them.  The next 10 years of his life were filled with one nightmare after another.  The family had been wealthy before the fall of Saigon, but they lost everything when the Communist regime took over.  And because Kien was Amerasian, he was the target of hatred and bigotry.  Unfortunately I didn't think the book was very well written.  The dialogue in particular wasn't believable.  But the story was certainly compelling and the book was worth reading anyway.  This was my second book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge and my eighth book for the New Author Challenge 2010.  I rate the book 3 out of 5.

In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O'Brien

John Wade has just lost a primary election for the U.S. Senate.  He and his wife escape to a remote cabin in northern Minnesota.  A few days later his wife disappears.  The story moves backwards and forwards in time.  Through flashbacks, we learn about John's difficult childhood, his love of magic, his service in Vietnam, and his political ambitions.  The author presents a variety of theories for what might have happened.  He also presents a great deal of information about motivations and how it is impossible to really know another person.  It was extremely well written, and I rate it 5 out of 5.

This was my first book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge, my third book for the New Author Challenge, and the current month's selection for my book club.

Reading Challenge for 2010

I participated in my first reading challenge this year and enjoyed it so much that I've just signed up for another one for 2010.  This is another War Through the Generations reading challenge.  This year's challenge was World War II; next year's is the Vietnam War.  I'm going to read (at least) 5 books for the challenge.  I haven't chosen my books yet, but I read primarily fiction and I love historical fiction.  If you'd like to join me in this reading challenge, you can read more about it here.