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3.25 AVERAGE
3.25 AVERAGE
War stories and war movies bother me. So, when I got this book to read, I almost didn't read it. Since it was a collection of short stories, I went ahead and read it, hoping for the best.
Mogelson did a great job depicting how wars and combat affect soldiers, both in war and in peacetime. This is actually why I dislike war stories so much: it's just commonplace to throw these men and women into horrific conditions, instruct them to kill then toss them back in to reality without any help. I've always felt that war is played as a game by the people declaring it. It's easy to declare when you never have to fight.
The characters we meet actually intertwine throughout the stories, their past, their present. Veterans of Korea, Afghanistan, Iraq. Veterans who can't handle life after war, who give up, turn angry and violent.
All in all, each story made me sad and angry about how vets are treated, or in several cases, ignored and left alone, after they have been used by the bigwigs to win their wars. Don't get me wrong, some wars were justified. But just as many were not.
Mogelson did a great job depicting how wars and combat affect soldiers, both in war and in peacetime. This is actually why I dislike war stories so much: it's just commonplace to throw these men and women into horrific conditions, instruct them to kill then toss them back in to reality without any help. I've always felt that war is played as a game by the people declaring it. It's easy to declare when you never have to fight.
The characters we meet actually intertwine throughout the stories, their past, their present. Veterans of Korea, Afghanistan, Iraq. Veterans who can't handle life after war, who give up, turn angry and violent.
All in all, each story made me sad and angry about how vets are treated, or in several cases, ignored and left alone, after they have been used by the bigwigs to win their wars. Don't get me wrong, some wars were justified. But just as many were not.
2/5 Stars. This was a DNF, but I did read the majority and am going to mark it as read. I suffered through this... I don't think it was bad, just not my thing. I did receive a review copy of this book, so out of respect I had to put it down.
There's been a kind of interesting trend in the short story world in these past few years to center narratives around veterans and soldiers who fought in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. These Heroic, Happy Dead counts itself in that number. It's comparable to Redeployment, the Phil Klay novel that I loved, but writer Luke Mogelson takes a less elegiac approach and often the stories will leave you feeling more hurt than happy. I think what kept me from truly embracing the book is that though the characters were interesting, not all of them were engaging and the connections to their service not always clear. This is illuminated by the "Peacetime" story where we meet a sick guy, but are kept on the surface rather than getting any insight. My favorite story in the book was "Sea Bass" which really felt like it connected from a place of character and overarching theme.
There was just something missing from these stories. They all seemed unfinished to me. I certainly don't need to be spoon-fed content, but I was unable to intuit what the author's intent was in his writing. I just finished this book and I can honestly say that I can't remember any one of them that made a lasting impact on me. Shame, a lot of potential material to draw from but Mogeleson just didn't quite get there.
I received this as as an Early Reviewer for Library thing. Great writing. Honest and human and brutal. Some of it doesn't make sense and some of it is my friends back after their time in this war. We need more of this.
3.5 stars. I found several of the stories in this collection utterly riveting and illuminating (TO THE LAKE, VISITORS, KIDS), but as a whole I don't think I'll regard it as memorable enough to merit a higher rating. Still, Luke Mogelson's writing carries that haunting quality that dogs you throughout his work — that singular "thing" alerting you to a true talent. While not all of THESE HEROIC, HAPPY DEAD was for me, I'll certainly pick up whatever Mogelson writes in the future.
DISCLAIMER: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.
DISCLAIMER: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.
*I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways*
I don't quite get these stories (although that may be half the point; the characters in the stories never seem to fully get what's happening in their lives either, there's a feeling of detachment to everything). Sense everyone feels detached it's hard to keep track of the characters and not lump them together as one current/ex-soldier even though a couple of the characters show up in more than one story.
I don't quite get these stories (although that may be half the point; the characters in the stories never seem to fully get what's happening in their lives either, there's a feeling of detachment to everything). Sense everyone feels detached it's hard to keep track of the characters and not lump them together as one current/ex-soldier even though a couple of the characters show up in more than one story.
Holy cow this book was good. I took an ARC to enjoy on the plane until I fell asleep and I didn't put the book down. The author does a fantastic job of tying so many stories together.
I received this book for free through Bookstr's giveaways.
Like most short story collections, there were some stories I liked and some that I didn't. My personal favorites were "To the Lake," "Sea Bass," and "Visitors".
The author did a good job of showcasing how war can affect people and their families.
Overall, it was well written and I enjoyed it.
Like most short story collections, there were some stories I liked and some that I didn't. My personal favorites were "To the Lake," "Sea Bass," and "Visitors".
The author did a good job of showcasing how war can affect people and their families.
Overall, it was well written and I enjoyed it.
This book, with ten vignettes relaying the stories of people whose lives have been forever changed by war. Although they are separate stories, there are threads of relation in several of them, tying together the experiences of disparate voices. It reminded me a bit of The Last True Story I'll Ever Tell in its unflinching look at those we celebrate during wartime and conveniently ignore once they've returned. As someone who has a hard time understanding the concept and evil of war, and someone who will never participate in one, it's important to me to read these insights.