Scan barcode
eiseneisen's review against another edition
4.0
Usain Bolt was put on this Earth to run, and so doing display to the rest of us just how beautiful and magnificent a human being can be when performing his very best. Tim O'Brien was put on this Earth to participate in and write about war, and so doing display to the rest of us just how ugly and depraved the human being can be when acting his very worst.
Going After Cacciato is a first rate novel that manages to detail the Vietnam experience while also taking the reader on a fun and whimsical journey. O'Brien seamlessly combines magical imagination with brutal reality like no other author I've ever read. I gave his novel The Things They Carried 5 stars. I'm giving this one 4.5. I give them both my highest recommendation. If are even remotely interested in the Vietnam war, or war in general, do yourself a favor and read 1 or both of these fantastic novels.
Going After Cacciato is a first rate novel that manages to detail the Vietnam experience while also taking the reader on a fun and whimsical journey. O'Brien seamlessly combines magical imagination with brutal reality like no other author I've ever read. I gave his novel The Things They Carried 5 stars. I'm giving this one 4.5. I give them both my highest recommendation. If are even remotely interested in the Vietnam war, or war in general, do yourself a favor and read 1 or both of these fantastic novels.
mblanton174's review against another edition
4.0
It's an interesting read, a daydream journey tracing a path from Vietnam to Europe, where the most surreal and horrifying events take place in the real world. That being said, it's not a book that sticks with you in the way The Things They Carried does -- but it's worth the read.
sarahbowman101's review against another edition
4.0
Tim O’Brien writes often about the Vietnam War, in fact I think that most of his books deal with it to some degree. But Tim O’Brien isn’t obsessed with Vietnam, he is obsessed with telling a war story. A True War Story. And what does that mean? Even he doesn’t know, but through thousands of words is trying to work it out. I read and liked The Things They Carried, but I loved this book. I have picked it up several times, and put it back down based on the description, but then saw it at Half Price Books and who could resist? This book is about a war story within a war story. And the beauty of this book is in its language and construction. After I finished this book, I flipped back through to go back, to keep going, to remember and revisit. If you want to learn about The True War Story, this is a great book. If you want to learn how to write a novel, this is a great book. If you want to read a book that is beautifully constructed and takes you along at just the right speed, this is a great book. This is a perfectly constructed story…but is it the True War Story? Yes. And no.
kaitlin_dunford's review against another edition
2.0
It was only okay for me, but that's because I really don't love war books in general. The writing was good. It had the makings of a great novel. Maybe if I loved war stories I'd have loved it. But I didn't.
claudiaswisher's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. I forget O'Brien's power between his books. This one is full of all the trademark elements: authenticity of place and time, finely-drawn characters, details that could only be shared with an author who had LIVED that life. His scenes of the boredom, the pick-up basketball games, and then the sheer terror of having to 'follow the book' and go down into those hell-holes of the tunnels, leave us little doubt he has experienced all this and more.
Berlin and his buddies go after sweet, dopey, Cacciato after he announces he's deserting the war and walking to Paris. Paris? Do they pursue him because of the killing of their first lieutenant, Mr. 'go by the books even if my men are killed in the process?' Do they follow out of that stifling boredome? DO they follow him at all?
O'Brien's warping of reality, of time and place, give the war an 'other worldly' feel, exactly, I would guess, what he intended.
I went back and copied all of the chapter titles after I read...the clues are there!
Berlin and his buddies go after sweet, dopey, Cacciato after he announces he's deserting the war and walking to Paris. Paris? Do they pursue him because of the killing of their first lieutenant, Mr. 'go by the books even if my men are killed in the process?' Do they follow out of that stifling boredome? DO they follow him at all?
O'Brien's warping of reality, of time and place, give the war an 'other worldly' feel, exactly, I would guess, what he intended.
I went back and copied all of the chapter titles after I read...the clues are there!
alexis21's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
patrick_114's review against another edition
3.0
Not what I expected. I did appreciate the novel very much but I prefer O'Brien's "The Things Things They Carried" over this work.
madoran's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75