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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
Not a bad story, just not the story I needed at the time I read it. It was a hard story to read and I just didn't enjoy it. It was well written and probably researched, just wasn't the right time for me.
Excellent. The story, the characters, the well-thought out history - just all round excellent.
Full review now posted!
Sometimes, a book hits you at exactly the wrong moment. In my case, that’s exactly what happened with American War. My lack of love for this book is definitely a case of “it’s not you; it’s me,” and that is in large part due to the timing.
This was a very good book objectively. It was beautifully written, well-researched, poignant, and plausible. But subjectively, I couldn’t get far enough past the sadness that said plausibility invoked within me to enjoy anything about the book. The plot was heavy stuff, and wasn’t meant to be enjoyed. But even in horribly sad books, I can usually find something to appreciate, whether that’s the prose, the characterization, the setting, or even the cautionary tale being presented. I just couldn’t do that with this book.
There is so much going on in America right now. I started reading this book about two days before Hurricane Harvey made landfall, and was unable to pick it up again until the worst of it was past. My state has been decimated by hurricanes in the past, and watching that happen to our neighbor to the west was heartbreaking. (My thoughts and prayers are still with those Texans whose lives were forever altered by the storm.) In the future put forth by the author in American War, our coastline has been radically altered by hurricanes. Almost a third of Louisiana is underwater by the year 2075, and many other seaport cities along the coast have sank beneath the waves. And that’s just the setting. Can you see why this was hard for me to read when I picked it up?
While the storms are wreaking havoc on American soil, that’s not the end of our issues. There is so much infighting within these “United States” at the moment that a second Civil War doesn’t seem that impossible. Reading a book about a second American Civil War while our nation is so divided wasn’t a good move on my part. It’s hard enough maintaining optimism without adding such a plausible picture of a future war-torn America to the visions already plaguing my mind. Our strength is in our unity, and without that unity we will fall. I wish that we as Americans could love one another more than we hate any opinion that opposes our own. And I have faith that with God, anything is possible. But things look bleak, and I didn’t need the bleakness of this book added on top of that.
I just picked up this book at exactly the wrong moment. It’s not the book’s fault. This was a well-written look at a possible future for America if we can’t learn to forgive and live and let live. I can’t give it less than three stars, because it was excellently written and Sarat was a heartbreaking character. But I can’t give it more than three stars because it broke my heart and gave me no balm for the wound. Please understand that this is a highly subjective rating, and that I’m not trying to deter anyone from reading the book. But if you do decide to read American War, prepare your mind for a story that’s sad and almost unrelievingly bleak. May the prophecy held within these pages never come to pass, and may God bless America.
Original review can be found at Booknest.
Sometimes, a book hits you at exactly the wrong moment. In my case, that’s exactly what happened with American War. My lack of love for this book is definitely a case of “it’s not you; it’s me,” and that is in large part due to the timing.
This was a very good book objectively. It was beautifully written, well-researched, poignant, and plausible. But subjectively, I couldn’t get far enough past the sadness that said plausibility invoked within me to enjoy anything about the book. The plot was heavy stuff, and wasn’t meant to be enjoyed. But even in horribly sad books, I can usually find something to appreciate, whether that’s the prose, the characterization, the setting, or even the cautionary tale being presented. I just couldn’t do that with this book.
There is so much going on in America right now. I started reading this book about two days before Hurricane Harvey made landfall, and was unable to pick it up again until the worst of it was past. My state has been decimated by hurricanes in the past, and watching that happen to our neighbor to the west was heartbreaking. (My thoughts and prayers are still with those Texans whose lives were forever altered by the storm.) In the future put forth by the author in American War, our coastline has been radically altered by hurricanes. Almost a third of Louisiana is underwater by the year 2075, and many other seaport cities along the coast have sank beneath the waves. And that’s just the setting. Can you see why this was hard for me to read when I picked it up?
While the storms are wreaking havoc on American soil, that’s not the end of our issues. There is so much infighting within these “United States” at the moment that a second Civil War doesn’t seem that impossible. Reading a book about a second American Civil War while our nation is so divided wasn’t a good move on my part. It’s hard enough maintaining optimism without adding such a plausible picture of a future war-torn America to the visions already plaguing my mind. Our strength is in our unity, and without that unity we will fall. I wish that we as Americans could love one another more than we hate any opinion that opposes our own. And I have faith that with God, anything is possible. But things look bleak, and I didn’t need the bleakness of this book added on top of that.
I just picked up this book at exactly the wrong moment. It’s not the book’s fault. This was a well-written look at a possible future for America if we can’t learn to forgive and live and let live. I can’t give it less than three stars, because it was excellently written and Sarat was a heartbreaking character. But I can’t give it more than three stars because it broke my heart and gave me no balm for the wound. Please understand that this is a highly subjective rating, and that I’m not trying to deter anyone from reading the book. But if you do decide to read American War, prepare your mind for a story that’s sad and almost unrelievingly bleak. May the prophecy held within these pages never come to pass, and may God bless America.
Original review can be found at Booknest.
Wow! Compelling, dark, chilling. Particularly scary during this political time as we watch so many of our freedoms under attack. Well written, thoughtful, I’ll be ruminating on this one for awhile.
"Sarat thought about how easy it would be to fix the mistake, to simply redraw the stars properly. But she knew that even broken history is history. The stars, cast wrong, must remain that way. It would be wrong to change them"
Set in a future where global warming has reduced America's land mass and a second civil war has broken out over the South's refusal to give up fossil fuels, American War follows the story of Sarat, a young girl who is growing up in the South. After surviving a massacre at the camp she lived in for six years, Sarat desires revenge on the people who killed her mother and injured her brother. But revenge will not come easy, and it will not come without a price.
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This was definitely a dense, slow read for me. I wish there had been a little more background about the causes of the war and the divisions that separated the country at the beginning of the novel, since these divides seemed crucial to understanding a lot of what was happening. Sarat as a character was an interesting person to read about, but felt pretty one dimensional motivation wise. I felt incredibly disappointed by the end of the book, because instead of closure it felt like the novel just ended back where it started and I wanted more for the characters. 3.5 stars.
Set in a future where global warming has reduced America's land mass and a second civil war has broken out over the South's refusal to give up fossil fuels, American War follows the story of Sarat, a young girl who is growing up in the South. After surviving a massacre at the camp she lived in for six years, Sarat desires revenge on the people who killed her mother and injured her brother. But revenge will not come easy, and it will not come without a price.
---
This was definitely a dense, slow read for me. I wish there had been a little more background about the causes of the war and the divisions that separated the country at the beginning of the novel, since these divides seemed crucial to understanding a lot of what was happening. Sarat as a character was an interesting person to read about, but felt pretty one dimensional motivation wise. I felt incredibly disappointed by the end of the book, because instead of closure it felt like the novel just ended back where it started and I wanted more for the characters. 3.5 stars.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"They didn’t understand, they just didn’t understand. You fight the war with guns, you fight the peace with stories."
American War is a book that punches you in the gut and essentially spits you out again. It's a raw story about war and radicalization in a United States that is very much unlike our own (though seeds of present day conversations exist it's downfall and destruction).
I appreciated the way the author pulled in primary source documents to set up the contextualize portions of the story but by the time we got to the end I had to flip back to the front few pages of the book to make sure I understood the overarching timeline.
The tragedy of our central character, Sarat is that in some ways, we can see how she becomes a martyr - it's terrifyingly real - and sympathize, while also being opposed to her ultimate choices.
Well worth reading, even though you will need a palate cleanser at the end.
American War is a book that punches you in the gut and essentially spits you out again. It's a raw story about war and radicalization in a United States that is very much unlike our own (though seeds of present day conversations exist it's downfall and destruction).
I appreciated the way the author pulled in primary source documents to set up the contextualize portions of the story but by the time we got to the end I had to flip back to the front few pages of the book to make sure I understood the overarching timeline.
The tragedy of our central character, Sarat is that in some ways, we can see how she becomes a martyr - it's terrifyingly real - and sympathize, while also being opposed to her ultimate choices.
Well worth reading, even though you will need a palate cleanser at the end.
I really struggled with a 2 star versus 3 star rating here - if Goodreads allowed me, I would give it 2.5 stars but am rounding up to 3. American War is a bleak piece of fiction that depicts a civil war-ridden America and the evolution of one character shaped by this America. Although the main conflict is a second Civil War reminiscent of the original Civil War, really to me the war was an inverted allegory of the conflict in the Middle East and the war on terror (where "America" has become the Middle East and the "Middle East" America). As a piece of dystopia, the novel was interesting in its description of the new geopolitical future - the Free Southern State, Bouazizi Empire, Mexican Protectorate etc. However American War wasn't interested in its world building so much as the impact this world has on the main character Sarat. I think this is where I felt ambivalent about the novel. While I understand Sarat's choices, and understand her personality, I just never really liked her. Typically I like my dystopias to be immersive, but I didn't get that with American War - which is fine if we're focusing on character development, but a little problematic if I can't fully connect with the character. But the plot moved along, and I found this alternate future - and its eerie parallels to today's reality - to be interesting. So, at the end of the book I asked myself, "Did I like it?" and overall, despite its flaws, I did.
5 stars for idea, 3 stars for execution.
I love/am scared by the idea of this book, which is unfortunately very plausible. But I found myself going between moments of excitement and moments of boredom in this book.
The execution of setting this book up in vignettes had some unfortunate flaws. We see life in pre/mid war border states; life in a refugee camp; a bit of life as a sniper for the rebels; a bit of life in prison; and a bit of life afterwards. But with these bits I never got a full picture of the countries, the war, life for everyone, and most of it was a bit slow. We are tracing Sarat's evolution into the North-hating person she becomes, but even with the intense eye focused on her, I didn't get why she was quite so filled with hate besides the fact that her parents were killed and such.
I devoured the book and still recommend to others. But I suspect the topic of the book and it's timelines will elevate it a tad more than it really should be.
I love/am scared by the idea of this book, which is unfortunately very plausible. But I found myself going between moments of excitement and moments of boredom in this book.
The execution of setting this book up in vignettes had some unfortunate flaws. We see life in pre/mid war border states; life in a refugee camp; a bit of life as a sniper for the rebels; a bit of life in prison; and a bit of life afterwards. But with these bits I never got a full picture of the countries, the war, life for everyone, and most of it was a bit slow. We are tracing Sarat's evolution into the North-hating person she becomes, but even with the intense eye focused on her, I didn't get why she was quite so filled with hate besides the fact that her parents were killed and such.
I devoured the book and still recommend to others. But I suspect the topic of the book and it's timelines will elevate it a tad more than it really should be.
Poorly written, too routine and humdrum to get into. DNF pretty swiftly.