The Things They Carried
~ Tim O'Brien
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A few people whose profile includes this book
CocteauTwin
~ 18-year-old woman in Muncie, IN
The Things They Carried
“the Love Song of Trabong. Oh man, that chapter makes this book.”
Immortal Rain Vol. 1
“It's a total chick-flick manga and I don't care.”
Citydweller
~ 32-year-old man in Halifax, Canada
The Things They Carried
“If you can read this book and not shed tears, I buy you a beer and question whether or not you have a human heart.”
The Book of Laughter and Forgetting
“Kundera is a great writer, but I get the imression he is a bit of a jerk. I hate his characters. The men are jerks and the women...”
mnMary
~ 48-year-old woman in Alexandria, MN
The Things They Carried
“Many great war novels are out there, but this one is a stand-out. I first read it in college and have read it a couple of times...”
Their Eyes Were Watching God
“This is such a beautiful book, so highly figurative and wise. I get to teach many great books, but this is the favorite one.”
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A few comments on The Things They Carried (10)
Mar 4, 2011, 7:28 PM
DavidRP, a 46-year-old man in Providence
“Books like this are hugely important, the human side, or toll, of war, as opposed to all that heroism and flag-waving from a safe distance. Think of the movies: "Inglourious Basterds" was just condescending, in my opinion, and superficial; "Saving Private Ryan" made me feel sympathy for anyone in a war, even the Germans. It's horrible, and having missed Vietnam - I was in the Marines - by a turn of fate, born in '56 as opposed to '54 like my brother, I've studied Vietnam extensively and have opinions about it I usually keep to myself because criticism of government policy is made (by government officials) to look like criticism of the troops. Most guys who went to Vietnam and walked down the rue Catinat don't even know they were there to mop up a French colonial mess. The minutia of daily life in battle - read Bao Ninh's "The Sorrow of War"; he was an NVA grunt - is something I heard vets chat about in the V.A. Hospital where I worked for a time. More people need to know these things. When the V.A. decided to cut sanitation efforts at the hospital... People just don't "get it." They can't "see it" or "know it" watching some silly Stallone movie. "The Things They Carried" should be required reading of every congressman who voted for a war in Iraq, the purpose of which was...? What's the storyline now? I find it hard to keep track. I apologize for draping my "radical" attitudes all over your book choice - it may not be what you "got out of it" at all - but I loath bypassing an opportunity to criticize governmental/defense industry callousness.”
Sep 18, 2011, 1:13 PM
JeremyPlath, a 31-year-old man in Washington
“I need to read this one. Have you read Going After Cacciato?”
Feb 9, 2011, 5:54 AM
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Kacy, a 22-year-old woman in Harrisburg
“<3”