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Title: The Things They Carried by TIM O'BRIEN ISBN: 0-7679-0289-0 Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 29 December, 1998 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.53 (419 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: All That They Carried
Comment: Tim Obrien uses a unique mixture of fiction and non-fiction to create a captivating collection of short stories suitable for all audiences. Rather than writing a novel solely about the gruesome, violent, aspects of combat during the Vietnam War, O'Brien also reveals the emotional baggage carried by each of his characters. His fast-paced, easy-to-read style turns pages quickly; it's a hard book to put down. As O'Brien writes, "A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behaviour, nor restrain men from doing the things men have always done." Through reading this book, one will learn the the importance of telling stories, the reasons for people's actions, and overall, something about themselves. This book teaches that life is not always what we expect it to be, that the choices we make reflect who we are, and that we must take responsibility for our actions. O'Brien opens the novel with an award-winning short story that grabs the reader's attention immediately. Unlike many other war stories, The Things They Carried presents a thought-provoking, richly humanistic novel through which all readers can identify.
Rating: 5
Summary: ". . . stories can save us"
Comment: Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried" is a book that transcends the genre of war fiction. Actually, it transcends the genre of fiction in general. Although labeled "a work of fiction" on the title page, the book really combines aspects of memoir, novel, and short story collection. I think you could use Audre Lorde's term "biomythography" to describe this book.
The first-person narrator of this book (named, like the author, Tim O'Brien) is a writer and combat veteran of the Vietnam War. The book actually deals with events before and after the war, in addition to depicting the war itself; the time span covers more than 30 years in the lives of O'Brien and his fellow soldiers.
"The Things They Carried" is an intensely "writerly" text. By that I mean that O'Brien and his characters often reflect directly on the activities of storytelling and writing. As a reader, I got the sense that I was being invited into the very process by which the book was created. This is an extraordinary technique, and O'Brien pulls it off brilliantly.
This being a war story, there are some truly disturbing, graphic, and violent scenes. But there are also scenes that are haunting, funny, surreal, or ironic. O'Brien depicts a memorable group of soldiers: the guilt-wracked Lieut. Cross; Kiowa, a Native American and devout, Bible-carrying Baptist; the sadistic but playful Azar; and more.
While this book is a complete and cohesive work of art, many of its component stories could stand alone as independent pieces of literature (in fact, I first encountered the title story in an anthology). But however you classify it, I consider "The Things They Carried" to be a profoundly moving masterpiece.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Beautifully Written Collection of Stories
Comment: "The Things They Carried" is a collection of short stories that skillfully blend truth and fiction, based on the experiences had by soldiers during the Vietnam War.
In vivid tales of bravery, loss, and cowardice, O'Brien is able to bring memories of Vietnam to the reader. Though it is a work of fiction, many of the stories are written with the author's intensely personal experiences in mind.
One thing that really struck me about "The Things They Carried," was the fact that the stories really weren't about war. On the contrary, the stories were about the men who fought a war that had little public support. These well-written vignettes are clearly a labor of love.
"The Things They Carried" intertwines the horrors of war with humor and a tenderness rarely seen in the genre. While this book could be interpreted as frightening or depressing, I read it as a testament to the human spirit, and the way it can live on through something as simple as a story.
I loved this book! I felt deeply connected with each and every character. And with a new war, the Iraq War, in the headlines each and every day (very much as Vietnam was a focal point for writers and readers in its day), this book is especially timely.
Everyone with an appreciation for life should read O'Brien's "The Things They Carried."
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Title: The Things They Carried (Cliffs Notes) by Jill Colella ISBN: 0764586688 Publisher: Cliffs Notes Pub. Date: 14 December, 2000 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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Title: If I Die in a Combat Zone : Box Me Up and Ship Me Home by TIM O'BRIEN ISBN: 0767904435 Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 01 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien ISBN: 0767904427 Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 01 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O'Brien, Penguin USA Paper ISBN: 0140250948 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: September, 1995 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title:Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried": A Study Guide from Gale's "Short Stories for Students" ASIN: B00006G3R1 Publisher: The Gale Group Pub. Date: 23 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $3.95 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $3.95 |
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