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sksrenninger's review against another edition
5.0
"The Marines are a department of the Navy, right?"
"Yeah, the men's department." << not from the book, but a joke that was on my mind while I read it, nonetheless.
I feel like trying to describe this book would be a disservice to it. I'm glad it exists and that I read it; everyone should.
"Yeah, the men's department." << not from the book, but a joke that was on my mind while I read it, nonetheless.
I feel like trying to describe this book would be a disservice to it. I'm glad it exists and that I read it; everyone should.
bones_in_the_woods's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
alisonhori's review against another edition
4.0
Really interesting book. It took me kind of an embarrassingly long time to realize that it was really a series of short stories...I kept trying to figure out why the guy had so many totally varied positions in the military but by chapter 3 I had it figured out-LOL and I am still not really clear on how much is fiction and how much is non-fiction but no matter....it was a really interesting read for me.
jimmyjamesnickels's review against another edition
3.0
Not to be that guy, but I wish I could give this book 3.5 stars. I spent more time than was probably reasonable, fretting about the seemingly lackluster three but not really feeling the full four stars. Perhaps I am over thinking this. Perhaps.
When I review or rate a book, the fundamental question I ask myself is "Did I enjoy this?" because for better or worse, that's what I read for: Enjoyment. I don't typically read for education or edification, but I'm receptive to either if I enjoy the ride. Given the subject matter present in Redeployment, I feel confident in saying this is not the sort of book you enjoy. It was grim, and sad and unflinchingly uncomfortable and is precisely the dialog largely missing in this country. Phil Klay attempts to give an understanding for what it is truly like Over There for those of us Back Home.
"I’d gotten a lot of 'Thank You For Your Service' handshakes, but nobody really knew what that service meant."
The author never delves into cliche or some romanticized, thumping patriotic vision of the war in Iraq but is instead frank and plain spoken. There were moments in the book of the sort I found myself putting it down after reading, feeling numb and dry mouthed with shock and in need of a little time to absorb, to reflect.
It was not without its flaws, however.
Reluctantly, I think the scope of the book was beyond the ability of the writer. None of the individual characters truly had a voice of their own, to the extent each chapter's narrator was the same in tone and focus as the one before. The situations change from one chapter to the next, but the protagonist himself is largely faceless. I can absolutely see how this Joe Marine Everyman vibe could be used considered a device effectively to make the situations more universal for deployed serviced members, and perhaps that was intentional.
Be that as it may, while I feel the twelve stories told here are very important ones, I feel they were diminished over all by the fact the reader begins to suffer from a monotonous sort of fatigue by book's end. It's difficult to connect to the emotions and motivations for the character when ostensibly you're dealing with a new cast each chapter...and yet, the characters are all extremely interchangeable from one chapter to the next. Perhaps if the chapters had been somehow linked together, or if the voices of each new chapter's protagonist been stronger and more unique, I would have enjoyed this book more than I had.
Aaaand there's that word again 'enjoy'. It seems flippant to pout about not enjoying a book on this subject matter but there's a difference between saying I can appreciate a book for what it was and going "Wow. This was amazing." Redeployment inspires the former response in me, but not the latter. I'm glad that I gave it a chance and would recommend it to others. While the situations and circumstances the author describes have deep emotional resonance it seems sad the characters themselves are largely forgettable once you've turned a few pages.
When I review or rate a book, the fundamental question I ask myself is "Did I enjoy this?" because for better or worse, that's what I read for: Enjoyment. I don't typically read for education or edification, but I'm receptive to either if I enjoy the ride. Given the subject matter present in Redeployment, I feel confident in saying this is not the sort of book you enjoy. It was grim, and sad and unflinchingly uncomfortable and is precisely the dialog largely missing in this country. Phil Klay attempts to give an understanding for what it is truly like Over There for those of us Back Home.
"I’d gotten a lot of 'Thank You For Your Service' handshakes, but nobody really knew what that service meant."
The author never delves into cliche or some romanticized, thumping patriotic vision of the war in Iraq but is instead frank and plain spoken. There were moments in the book of the sort I found myself putting it down after reading, feeling numb and dry mouthed with shock and in need of a little time to absorb, to reflect.
It was not without its flaws, however.
Reluctantly, I think the scope of the book was beyond the ability of the writer. None of the individual characters truly had a voice of their own, to the extent each chapter's narrator was the same in tone and focus as the one before. The situations change from one chapter to the next, but the protagonist himself is largely faceless. I can absolutely see how this Joe Marine Everyman vibe could be used considered a device effectively to make the situations more universal for deployed serviced members, and perhaps that was intentional.
Be that as it may, while I feel the twelve stories told here are very important ones, I feel they were diminished over all by the fact the reader begins to suffer from a monotonous sort of fatigue by book's end. It's difficult to connect to the emotions and motivations for the character when ostensibly you're dealing with a new cast each chapter...and yet, the characters are all extremely interchangeable from one chapter to the next. Perhaps if the chapters had been somehow linked together, or if the voices of each new chapter's protagonist been stronger and more unique, I would have enjoyed this book more than I had.
Aaaand there's that word again 'enjoy'. It seems flippant to pout about not enjoying a book on this subject matter but there's a difference between saying I can appreciate a book for what it was and going "Wow. This was amazing." Redeployment inspires the former response in me, but not the latter. I'm glad that I gave it a chance and would recommend it to others. While the situations and circumstances the author describes have deep emotional resonance it seems sad the characters themselves are largely forgettable once you've turned a few pages.
papelgren's review against another edition
4.0
The best stories in this book are those you wish didn't end so abruptly. While I found the entirety of the book slightly uneven, the project has major importance regarding the documentary of war and its effects on the people working through it. I'm looking forward to a novel by Klay, I think he must have several in there. At its best the prose is crisp and visceral, and the perspective(s) illuminate in unexpected ways.
mmotleyu's review against another edition
3.0
I listened to this book, and (embarrassingly) it took me awhile to figure out that these stories weren't all about the same characters... that sort of thing is much more apparent when you see the chapter titles! This novel is used at our school in a senior literature class in a war unit, so I wanted to read it to know what the students are experiencing here. Some of the content and language are very adult in this book-- many f bombs and adult situations like a first visit to a whore house, a whole unit that has the clap because they share a sex toy, etc. I did, however, find the stories as a whole to be very compelling. I felt like I understood especially what it was like to be a young soldier returning from deployment and not knowing how to reintegrate into a "normal" life. As an adult, I think it's a powerful book. I think students here read 3 of the stories and I have heard that it has been a successful teaching tool.
shirleytupperfreeman's review against another edition
I couldn’t put this powerful book down. It seems important to understand the physical, mental and spiritual effects of the current wars on the folks doing the fighting. The contrast between Klay’s gorgeous writing and the tragedies about which he writes is stunning.
ncarter5069's review against another edition
4.0
Where I originally went into this book expecting fluff, some sort of Clint Eastwood delivery similar to American Sniper or Flags of our Fathers, I actually got much more out of it. Klay succeeds in painting veterans at home moreso than overseas, but he doesn't fail there either. I haven't yet compared a collection to Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, but this may be it. Klay creates an all-too-real veteran struggling for answers against the atrocities he was forced to commit. Good work. I would've liked to see more from the Iraqi side of things, but Klay stuck with what he knew from his time served.