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snipinfool 's review for:
The Women
by Kristin Hannah
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The United States was involved in the Vietnam War and it was drafting young men to fight. Frances “Frankie” McGrath’s brother had just left for boot camp and she wanted to do something to support the war effort. In her family, men who had gone to war were celebrated and had a place of honor on the hero’s wall in her parent’s house. Frankie had recently graduated from nursing school and had just started working at a hospital. At her brother’s going away party, someone told Frankie that women could also be heroes when they were looking at the wall of photos. That comment stuck with her and she decided to act on it by joining the war as a nurse. This story told of her two tours in Vietnam and what her life was like once she returned home.
Kristin Hannah can tell a story. I loved this book. I could hardly put it down and read it in one day. Frankie’s character was written in a way that made her come to life in my head. Her choice to go to war was a decision she didn’t realize would deeply affect her life forever. It impacted her relationship with her parents and played a part in many of the decisions she made once she returned home. Barb and Ethel, lifelong friends she made in Vietnam, were by Frankie’s side throughout the ups and downs after her return. We would all be lucky to have friends like them. I was not surprised to read how our government kept certain war information secret and would spin the information released to the public to make it more palatable. I was angered by the military’s and VA’s response that no women were in Vietnam and that she was denied help for her PTSD because she didn’t fight. Frankie received the treatment that many women still receive. She was met with condescension and brushed off. The ending had me in tears and I cried for those whose sacrifice was forgotten or negated. I was young when the Vietnam War was fought and had an older cousin who went. He was one of the lucky ones who returned home. Another cousin wore a POW bracelet like one Frankie and others wore during that time. Women have often had a place in history that was denied to them until someone spoke up. I am glad this book touched on one of those times and told their story.
Kristin Hannah can tell a story. I loved this book. I could hardly put it down and read it in one day. Frankie’s character was written in a way that made her come to life in my head. Her choice to go to war was a decision she didn’t realize would deeply affect her life forever. It impacted her relationship with her parents and played a part in many of the decisions she made once she returned home. Barb and Ethel, lifelong friends she made in Vietnam, were by Frankie’s side throughout the ups and downs after her return. We would all be lucky to have friends like them. I was not surprised to read how our government kept certain war information secret and would spin the information released to the public to make it more palatable. I was angered by the military’s and VA’s response that no women were in Vietnam and that she was denied help for her PTSD because she didn’t fight. Frankie received the treatment that many women still receive. She was met with condescension and brushed off. The ending had me in tears and I cried for those whose sacrifice was forgotten or negated. I was young when the Vietnam War was fought and had an older cousin who went. He was one of the lucky ones who returned home. Another cousin wore a POW bracelet like one Frankie and others wore during that time. Women have often had a place in history that was denied to them until someone spoke up. I am glad this book touched on one of those times and told their story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Alcohol