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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
This book came highly recommended and did not disappoint.
It's relatively short, but packed with stories and take-aways. It's concise and dense, yet not heavy. It's very satisfying.
And though it dealt with homecoming and belonging—suggested by the subtitle—it seemed to spend a great deal of time talking about war. (I didn't mind, as it was highly interesting.) How does war create tribes? How does shared trauma create tribes, and what kind of outcomes are produced when you are exposed to trauma with your tribe?
Who does and doesn't PTSD affect? Why does PTSD affect those who never see combat just as much as those on the front lines, statistically?
One quote that sums up why this is important and how it's connected to tribe:
"If war were purely and absolutely bad in every single aspect and toxic in all its effects, it would probably not happen as often as it does. But in addition to all the destruction and loss of life, war also inspires ancient human virtues of courage, loyalty, and selflessness that can be utterly intoxicating to the people who experience them."
How has societal cultural change made assimilation so. much. harder. when people return from war? And what makes re-entry after a war (or after living abroad, as I could identify with) actually easy for some?
Why would anyone ever admit that they long for the days of the war? (They do!)
This book has made me appreciate seasons of life like when I lived overseas and—even in the mundane—community and belonging to a tribe made everything—even the mundane—Matter-with-a-capital-M. I LOVED this book.
It's relatively short, but packed with stories and take-aways. It's concise and dense, yet not heavy. It's very satisfying.
And though it dealt with homecoming and belonging—suggested by the subtitle—it seemed to spend a great deal of time talking about war. (I didn't mind, as it was highly interesting.) How does war create tribes? How does shared trauma create tribes, and what kind of outcomes are produced when you are exposed to trauma with your tribe?
Who does and doesn't PTSD affect? Why does PTSD affect those who never see combat just as much as those on the front lines, statistically?
One quote that sums up why this is important and how it's connected to tribe:
"If war were purely and absolutely bad in every single aspect and toxic in all its effects, it would probably not happen as often as it does. But in addition to all the destruction and loss of life, war also inspires ancient human virtues of courage, loyalty, and selflessness that can be utterly intoxicating to the people who experience them."
How has societal cultural change made assimilation so. much. harder. when people return from war? And what makes re-entry after a war (or after living abroad, as I could identify with) actually easy for some?
Why would anyone ever admit that they long for the days of the war? (They do!)
This book has made me appreciate seasons of life like when I lived overseas and—even in the mundane—community and belonging to a tribe made everything—even the mundane—Matter-with-a-capital-M. I LOVED this book.
I would like to suggest that this might be our tribe's holiday book club 'choice' come December. It's that meaningful. And it's that short. We can talk about what it is to lead an authentic life; challenge Junger's premise that war and crises give meaning to life (or not); take a group oath to desist from giving lip service to our veterans—and think of more positive ways to integrate returning warriors, and ourselves, into society. If we do, it will join other important books in our family's canon such as The Big House by George Colt and Sara Lawrence Lightfoot's Respect as literary guideposts to a values-driven life.
Having lived outside the US and been a part of a community that needed one another, coming back to the States we've struggled to find that same level of connection and belonging. Junger's book helped to make sense of what we as human beings need and miss out on in modern society.
Living in a small rural community in the west of Ireland and having also lived in the US for several years this book feels right.
It is still very "tribal" here and indeed through a great deal of tragedies in the last few years I have seen the strength a community gets from its deep networks.
Having worked with many men who had been veterans in the US and seen their real pain and alienation from society I can understand his thesis at a deep level.
I had not seen this sort of discussion of PTSD before but it makes sense. I found the statistics of PTSD sufferers in Israel particularly eye opening. The discussion of the Blitz, Sierra Leone, Bosnia war, various disasters deeply interesting.
The overwhelming feeling I had from the book is how incredibly screwed up the modern world is, if people actually preferred how they felt during these horrors than day to day life in the disjointed uncaring world we live in.
Someone who thinks this clearly and deeply must find the typical prattling of talking heads particularly difficult.
It is still very "tribal" here and indeed through a great deal of tragedies in the last few years I have seen the strength a community gets from its deep networks.
Having worked with many men who had been veterans in the US and seen their real pain and alienation from society I can understand his thesis at a deep level.
I had not seen this sort of discussion of PTSD before but it makes sense. I found the statistics of PTSD sufferers in Israel particularly eye opening. The discussion of the Blitz, Sierra Leone, Bosnia war, various disasters deeply interesting.
The overwhelming feeling I had from the book is how incredibly screwed up the modern world is, if people actually preferred how they felt during these horrors than day to day life in the disjointed uncaring world we live in.
Someone who thinks this clearly and deeply must find the typical prattling of talking heads particularly difficult.
Audiobook
I really enjoyed this book as the author discusses the need of tribe and/or family to move forward as a society, and the lack of it could only tear us down.
He goes from early Native American times and how others when shown how they interact and support each other would sometimes leave their regular way of life to adopt theirs.
He shows how this tribal philosophy has stayed in tact and grown throughout the years. Showing how it has stayed true from Native American days through great wars, mass shootings and even raising children.
The biggest eye opener for me was his discussion on the financial crisis of 2008 and how the so called creators of this terrible time weren’t reprimanded but rewarded financially even as the companies they represented were receiving government assistance so they didn’t fail at the hands of the deeds that they themselves created
Good listen/read. Well worth it
I really enjoyed this book as the author discusses the need of tribe and/or family to move forward as a society, and the lack of it could only tear us down.
He goes from early Native American times and how others when shown how they interact and support each other would sometimes leave their regular way of life to adopt theirs.
He shows how this tribal philosophy has stayed in tact and grown throughout the years. Showing how it has stayed true from Native American days through great wars, mass shootings and even raising children.
The biggest eye opener for me was his discussion on the financial crisis of 2008 and how the so called creators of this terrible time weren’t reprimanded but rewarded financially even as the companies they represented were receiving government assistance so they didn’t fail at the hands of the deeds that they themselves created
Good listen/read. Well worth it
For anyone wondering why our society is so dysfunctional in spite of all our modern conveniences, this book holds some of the answers.
I liked some of his perspectives on human adaptation to risk and war in the modern world. I particularly enjoyed the discussion on PTSD. Yet despite all his talking points, he’s somehow convinced that Native Americans were Stone Age societies a couple centuries ago. That perspective colored over all the discussions for me because either way the bias leaves too much room for subjectivity.
I might have read the abridged version to this. Interested to know what the longer version is like. Surprised by how political it was and found the chapters about Native American life not completely fleshed out and maybe idealized a bit. More interested on his perspective of War and PTSD. The concept that war makes for stronger, unifying communities was new to me as well as the idea that we need a better place in US culture for veterans. I want another chapter(s) on ideas for future culture shift of US and less political/moralizing about left/right virtues because I think that limits the audience a bit.