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A review by lauraborkpower
The Caine Mutiny: A Novel of World War II by Herman Wouk
5.0
Hot dog this is a good book!
I don't use exclamation points lightly in my reviews (or ever), but I almost used two exclamation points in a row after that last sentence (yes, two).
I am in absolute love with this book. Wouk creates an amazing world of both nuance and specificity so that I was fully on board the Caine destroyer but I never felt like the time period or setting was pushing itself too much. That's probably because this was a book written only a few years after the story was to have taken place (and based on Wouk's own wartime experiences). It's so much better than some over researched contemporary period piece that tries too hard (as I find many of them do). The ship itself is a character, and a very good one, and the finale of a tremendous war looms in the background.
I can't go into detail about everything that makes this book great--because there are too many--but if you're a fan of stories that are character driven and claustrophobically tense with characters whose choices are morally ambiguous (oh, yeah, and there's courtroom drama [and a love story] too!), then this is the book for you. Not only are the story and characters compelling, but it was enjoyable to read a World War II book that wasn't about land battle in Europe. And since finishing, I have been diagnosing my coworkers as Queegs (which isn't good, I know, and really it's only been about three people [but they're total Queegs; trust me]).
It's a long read, but you won't notice. I hated to see it end, and the morning after I'd finished it, I woke up so sad that I almost started it right up again. Kevin Pariseau does a solid narrating job--he's pleasant to listen to and moves smoothly from character to character.
I don't use exclamation points lightly in my reviews (or ever), but I almost used two exclamation points in a row after that last sentence (yes, two).
I am in absolute love with this book. Wouk creates an amazing world of both nuance and specificity so that I was fully on board the Caine destroyer but I never felt like the time period or setting was pushing itself too much. That's probably because this was a book written only a few years after the story was to have taken place (and based on Wouk's own wartime experiences). It's so much better than some over researched contemporary period piece that tries too hard (as I find many of them do). The ship itself is a character, and a very good one, and the finale of a tremendous war looms in the background.
I can't go into detail about everything that makes this book great--because there are too many--but if you're a fan of stories that are character driven and claustrophobically tense with characters whose choices are morally ambiguous (oh, yeah, and there's courtroom drama [and a love story] too!), then this is the book for you. Not only are the story and characters compelling, but it was enjoyable to read a World War II book that wasn't about land battle in Europe. And since finishing, I have been diagnosing my coworkers as Queegs (which isn't good, I know, and really it's only been about three people [but they're total Queegs; trust me]).
It's a long read, but you won't notice. I hated to see it end, and the morning after I'd finished it, I woke up so sad that I almost started it right up again. Kevin Pariseau does a solid narrating job--he's pleasant to listen to and moves smoothly from character to character.