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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
Okay it was really good. And maybe bc I read it for school it was even better bc the whole time I was thinking about parallels and themes and metaphors. Ugh the writing was really good. At some points it was like a collection of individual personal stories or stories about the other soldiers and then at other points it looked at the pre or post war or at the whole war objectively. The changing of perspective made you get a really comprehensive vision and feel of the whole thing. And Tim even acknowledges that and says things like “that story was made up but it doesn’t matter bc I want u to feel what I felt.” It was tragically beautiful and maddeningly sad.
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Breathtaking—everything a story should be. “Speaking of Courage” is about as perfect of a piece of fiction that I’ve ever read.
A little too intense for me right now. An extremely important read, and I'd recommend people who are interested in the horrors of the Vietnam War read it, but I just couldn't get through it.
This book was surprisingly great. I've never read a war book due to the fact that I don't like war movies. Most war movies feel as if they are pushing an agenda or glorifying the war but this book did none of those things. O'Brien told the story as it was and just let it exist. He acknowledged that things were horrible.
Cool story on the importance of storytelling, how sometimes the truth isn’t the point at all. Just the way it made you feel
What a great collection of stories - though the backdrop is Vietnam, it's more about storytelling than the war.
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Although it is labelled as a work of fiction, I have no doubt that they were all influenced by real experiences of the war in Vietnam. They feel less like a story and more like recounts. It really brings out the spirit of how to tell a war story mentioned in the book.
Stories like "On the Rainy River", "The Man I killed" and "The Ghost Soldiers" made me feel so overwhelmed - like im completely in Tim O' Brien's head and experiencing it for myself. The repetition of the experience reveals a sense of unravelling at the horrors he had experienced. What hits the most is the chapters after the story has been told - one that hit the most is the one after "Speaking of Courage" - The trauma left by the war on the supposedly bright futures of young men like Norman Bowker really hits home.
Some stories are lighthearted but never do you forgot you are in Vietnam.
Edit: saw smb's review - "imagine writing the title of your book as a “a work of fiction” and then proceeding to trick all the readers into thinking it’s completely real. that takes talent." Yea thats basically the whole vibe of the book.
Stories like "On the Rainy River", "The Man I killed" and "The Ghost Soldiers" made me feel so overwhelmed - like im completely in Tim O' Brien's head and experiencing it for myself. The repetition of the experience reveals a sense of unravelling at the horrors he had experienced. What hits the most is the chapters after the story has been told -
Some stories are lighthearted but never do you forgot you are in Vietnam.
Edit: saw smb's review - "imagine writing the title of your book as a “a work of fiction” and then proceeding to trick all the readers into thinking it’s completely real. that takes talent." Yea thats basically the whole vibe of the book.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense