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greenan26's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, War, and Violence
Moderate: Racial slurs
carlajo713's review against another edition
4.0
The Things They Carried, to me, was more powerful than this book. I felt it was kind of spotty. There was no real flow of action from beginning to end. It was more disconnected. I’m glad that the story was shared, but the read itself was a little less than satisfactory
rob503's review against another edition
5.0
A very eloquent memoir from a man trying to come to grips with his experience in Vietnam. He is against the war and is consistently coming to grips with the juxtaposition of his moral revulsion to the conflict and his ingrained concepts of honor that stem from an inner desire to fulfill his obligation to serve his country after being drafted.
Extremely well written this will serve as an example to me as I write my own memories of war and service.
Extremely well written this will serve as an example to me as I write my own memories of war and service.
emmasophierund's review against another edition
3.0
“All the soul searching and midnight conversations and books and beliefs were voided by abstention, extinguished by forfeiture, for lack of oxygen, by a sort of sleepwalking default”
paul_cornelius's review against another edition
4.0
You can see the outline of themes and stories that will recur throughout O'Brien's Vietnam War books in this, his first work, a memoir published in 1973. Perhaps because it is closer in time to the events it describes, If I Die in a Combat Zone has the ring of authenticity to it. Authenticity with an attitude. And that is far better than some of his later novels and short stories, which tend towards a preachiness that borders on the self-righteous. Still, I have the idea that sometimes O'Brien is fooling us with this "memoir." Without knowing anything about O'Brien or the time he pulled duty in Vietnam, I nevertheless feel that something is just a bit askew, here. Whether literally memoirs or not, the work stands on its own. And the cynicism, incompetence, lies, fears, and anger all comes through with a sense of actual experience. There are other attitudes and sides of the war, of course, but this particular one of O'Brien's is meted out to a war weary public already alienated from the war at the time of its publication.
It is also an accessible work. A little too much is made over the form of O'Brien's novels. There is a certain amount of gushing over his literary approach and elliptical style. In fact, it's something guaranteed to grab hold of the interest of high school AP teachers who think they've found something edgy and relevant for their students. But in fact almost all of O'Brien's work is accessible. He is not some Vietnam War version of James Joyce or Malcolm Lowry. He is not even a discount version of Jorge Luis Borges as some seem intent on making him. And, truthfully, he sometimes seems so engrossed with the form of his novels that it does seem he takes himself a little too self importantly in this regard.
All in all, however, this is a good work to provide insight to the experience of the war. Like his other works, however, the Vietnamese never appear more than as a sideshow. They generate sympathy, fear, and pity. But you never see them revealed. For O'Brien, it is as if they aren't really there. His world is one of bivouacs, firebases, camps, and outposts. Occasionally he encounters a hamlet, but its people remain mostly faceless, without lives or meaning of there own. I've always found this my main irritation with his writing, this sort of "Yessum, Bwana" attitude. Vietnam is also a country of rich scenery, vivid atmosphere, and a downright mystical air. But you'll never get any of this from Tim O'Brien. It's like he was never really there.
It is also an accessible work. A little too much is made over the form of O'Brien's novels. There is a certain amount of gushing over his literary approach and elliptical style. In fact, it's something guaranteed to grab hold of the interest of high school AP teachers who think they've found something edgy and relevant for their students. But in fact almost all of O'Brien's work is accessible. He is not some Vietnam War version of James Joyce or Malcolm Lowry. He is not even a discount version of Jorge Luis Borges as some seem intent on making him. And, truthfully, he sometimes seems so engrossed with the form of his novels that it does seem he takes himself a little too self importantly in this regard.
All in all, however, this is a good work to provide insight to the experience of the war. Like his other works, however, the Vietnamese never appear more than as a sideshow. They generate sympathy, fear, and pity. But you never see them revealed. For O'Brien, it is as if they aren't really there. His world is one of bivouacs, firebases, camps, and outposts. Occasionally he encounters a hamlet, but its people remain mostly faceless, without lives or meaning of there own. I've always found this my main irritation with his writing, this sort of "Yessum, Bwana" attitude. Vietnam is also a country of rich scenery, vivid atmosphere, and a downright mystical air. But you'll never get any of this from Tim O'Brien. It's like he was never really there.
erika_reynolds20's review against another edition
3.0
Admittedly, this is a biased review because O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” is one of my favorite books of all time. Had I read this book first, I probably would have enjoyed it more. There’s nothing wrong with the plot or writing, but it’s hard to beat “The Things They Carried.” This book just pales in comparison.
kellylynnthomas's review against another edition
4.0
First, I love Tim O'Brien, and this is an excellent memoir of being drafted and forced to fight in the infantry during the Vietnam War. This was his first book, and I think that shows. If I Die in a Combat Zone doesn't have the same surreal quality most of his novels do, although it's still beautifully written. There's a certain starkness to it, a certain emotional deadness. That sounds like a criticism, but it's actually not--I think he perfectly captures how he felt at the time, and it makes sense that you'd have to really dam up your emotions to get through such a horrific experience.
Although I wasn't alive during the Vietnam War, I've always looked to O'Brien's books to help me understand the "wars" in Iraq and Afghanistan, which started when I was a teenager. His work has also helped me understand my father-in-law and my partner's family better (FIL was a helicopter crew chief in Vietnam).
Although I wasn't alive during the Vietnam War, I've always looked to O'Brien's books to help me understand the "wars" in Iraq and Afghanistan, which started when I was a teenager. His work has also helped me understand my father-in-law and my partner's family better (FIL was a helicopter crew chief in Vietnam).