August 29

The Things They Carried (1990)
By Tim O'Brien

Most of us will never face being drafted to fight in a war in which we don't believe.  It's clear from this book that Tim O'Brien had a decision to make, and that he considered running away to Canada rather than face action in Vietnam.  This collection of short stories reads like fact, but is instead an exploration of some of the reactions to the fear and the violence of war, as well as ways people cope.  O'Brien lists the tools and weapons that are all part of a solider's basic equipment, but also cites personal items soldiers carry, tools that help them survive psychologically: e.g., one soldier carries his grandfather's hatchet, one carries a slingshot, another carries love letters.  O'Brien talks about how soldiers react to the loss of one of their men.  He also discusses how it feels to come back home and try to live a normal life after the trauma of war.

While the United States is not currently fighting a war as actively as during the Vietnam era, it's helpful to read O'Brien's stories to get a picture of the agony of war before, during, and after.  Soldiers who returned from Vietnam did not generally get the hero's welcome of earlier wars, and the US's objectives in Vietnam were not achieved; it was a lose-lose situation.  For those of us fortunate enough to avoid the agony of war, the least we can do is to try to understand the pain and recovery of those who go and fight.