I thought this book was good in both what happens physically to soldiers body and what happens mentally to soldiers body. a must read

This horrifying and gut-wrenching book makes one really think about war and all the terrors and nightmares that go along with it. So many young lives were ruined or ended as a result and we can never go back and change that. I know many people that served in Vietnam and their stories are powerful as well as haunting.

This book shook me to the core of my being. Highly recommended read.

There were a few insightfull stories in this tome. But, this book is written by a real liberal. In his eyes there is no winning. There is only digging one hole to be filled by digging another. Tim O'Brien is a wimp, part of the wussification of America. There is no black or white just ambiguity. This explains why this book is used so much by colleges and universities (liberal educators). In effect this book says "I am so smart that I can't actually kill the man that wants and WILL kill me. I can look though the enemy's eyes and I am the enemy." What a lot of drivel. When America and the rest of the Western World is taken over by Islam his descendents and mine will bow reverently toward Mecca.

This was such a good book!! My college professor was the editor which is honestly the only way I would have ever come across this because he had us read it for class. I loved it. It was so real and easy to get attached to the characters, as if you were reading about friends. Definitely worth trying out if you don't typically read something of this genre.

More than just a war novel, it's a study of the individual and of humanity. While the line between fiction and the author's experiences and that between fantasy and reality is often blurred, O'Brien's writing style is amazing.

That being said, the book still disappointed me with its total lack of subtlety and redundancy. I found myself skipping through entire paragraphs because I had read them before in previous stories, and I was irritated by the constant, exhuasted refrain, "I'm forty-three years old, and a writer now..."

O'Brien is very clear on the point that, with a true war story, morality and truth are not necessary. I appreciate this, and I give him credit for the fact that his book echoes his own definition of the Vietnam War itself - vague, ambivalent, undefined, and without clarity or consistency. This, I feel he does fairly effectively, but for the fact that he repeatedly reminds the reader that that is his purpose. However, the inconsistency of the book, and the seemingly haphazard arrangement of the stories, made it difficult to follow at times, and overall it felt very sloppily written and constructed.

Tim O'Brien's invokes in the reader a feeling of deeply understanding the war experiences of Vietnam War soldiers. His writing is amazing. This will stand the test of time.

My daughter and I recently traveled to Hanoi and I came home wanting to know more about the Viet Nam war experience, which was core to my college years (1964-1968). Tim O'Brien captures the bravado, sweetness, fear, friendship, cruelty and horror that permeated that experience for our young men serving there. This is a must read for those in my generation who are still trying to understand the meaning of that long and desperate war that tore our country apart.

O'Brien's narrative is crude and unpatriotic. It is, by his own admission, one-sided, which proves to be one of its most significant undoings. The stories in them are difficult to follow at best, and poorly written at their worst. Believing that the stories are actually about the Vietnam War is a misconception. In the cover it says "This is a work of FICTION." (A poor one, I might add.) The stories entailed in the book are completely unbelievable. It is a disgrace. It is a disgrace to Vietnam, America, and Veterans of Vietnam. O' Brien gives no consideration to the reasons that America entered into the war, nor does he give thought to the fact that the Vietnam War actually contained numerous small victories for Democracy. He fails to mention how many South Vietnamese were in fact members of the National Liberation Front (also known as the Viet Cong) and intent on killing Americans. He paints the Vietnamese as a peace loving, kind people, victimized by evil foreign American intruders. The symbolism and repetitiveness in The Things They Carried are poorly written and obvious to a smart 3 year old. Maybe that's why when the Sweethart of Song Tra Bong was made as a movie, it was a B-Movie. Also when Tim O'Brien described "The Man that I killed," Tim O' Brien talks about a Vietnamese that he "shot." He makes constant and repeated references to the description of the man. He describes him over five time. Five TIMES. What, are you getting paid by the page or something? Do you need the extra $? Who cares? The whole book is awful. Reading the Wikipedia page on the book is more enjoyable than reading the book. Also, in "How to tell a true war story," he describes that a "true war story" should in essence be exaggerated. So if I want to tell you about what happened in a war, truthfully, I should lie? Does that make any sense? All of the stories, and in fact, the entire book only focus on the smallest fraction of events in Vietnam. O'Brien admits that himself. O'Brien includes numerous contradictions in his story for the purpose of illustrating the incongruities inherent to the Vietnam War, these contradictions make for a very dry and unnecessarily lengthy read. Much of O'Brien's novel is, in fact, repetition and contradiction.

The Things They Carried seems more of a memoir than fiction, but I'll have to take Tim O'Brien's word for it. The book is used in college classrooms today, despite fading generational interest in Vietnam. Why? Because it's neither a polemic nor a glorification of the warrior's dilemmas within the fog of war. O'Brien lays details out there and you make of them what you will. That's the true test of a classic, and of a warrior's integrity. In my mind, this book is both - a warrior's classic.

Here is one of the most amazing books I've ever read. Reads like a tough memoir but also like excellent literary fiction, and shares many a profound insight about war, courage, human nature, truth, trust, friendship, and a hundred other deep topics.

What makes this all the more interesting is the variety of stories O'Brien tells, some read like Chekovian sketches, others like the best of Andre Dubus in a grittier setting. My favorite, How to Tell a True War Story, explores the ironies and absurdities of war in so many ways -- how war changes the combat soldier, how it creates deprivation and desire, how it is both unspeakably ugly and yet beautiful to behold at the same time. Only someone who has been there and experienced these things can write with the authority O'Brien displays here.

This should be required reading in high schools and colleges across the land. Ten stars!

My advice to anyone who loves great books -- read this book right now. it is quite simply everything i would want literature to be. this book has helped shaped for me what to expect from books.

a seamless combination of memoir & short stories, this book is o'brien's account of his experience in vietnam. it is told with such honesty and rawness that the emotion is sometimes overwhelming.

Honored by the Pulitzer Prize, the ultimate bestseller The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien tells us about O'Brien's true personal stories in Vietnam War. His realistic war stories often drive us to the Vietnam in 1960's. This "work of fiction" may seem as a collection of short stories, but these little pieces are wonderfully woven to sculpt this masterpiece. Even though the writer may not have stayed in the Tip Top Lodge or his friends might not have died through gory and painful moments, his heartbreaking way of telling war stories creates these remarkable stories.

O'Brien opens up the new chapter of the war stories as he recollects his memories. He mentions his friends' death and how they have influenced soldiers in the battlefield. One soldier's death seriously impacts first lieutenant, Jimmy Cross, who considers himself accountable for Ted's death. Jimmy's soldiers also realize how the death of their friend come to them, how they need to be alert about this new environment, and what they really care. The narrator also wanders between the margin of the exile and the war, and he finally makes his decision in favor of his conscience.

Since this is a "work of fiction," we know that stories in The Things They Carried may not be true. He might not have seen his friends dying. He might not have known his friends, Rat Kiley, Kiowa, and others. However, these stories still come close to our hearts because his true, touching descriptions of the scenes make us believe them. Also, his lessons on how to write the true stories make us even more to believe his stories as he takes us to Vietnam and makes us see what has happened in 1960's. As he narrates events that have happened around him, he finally binds them together, making a beautiful, heartbreaking fiction.

Tim O'Brien erases the invisible line between the truth and the fiction which shows his skillful way of writing. It seemed that he had undergone through painful experiences such as his friends' death and the loss of the lover, but as I read more, it was difficult to tell whether he actually saw these happening. Furthermore, the instructions on how to write the true story may be wrong since this book is still constrained as the fiction. However, they make us believe what he is telling us and also his examples that he has given. As we believe more of his examples, he finally blinds us to believe this whole book. This amazing trick connects his war stories to the profound meaning of our lives.

This book is limited in a sense that it can only be written from the view of another soldier. Therefore, the larger scale of the characters' development can't be seen. Readers can only know the superficial knowledge about most of the soldiers. O'Brien mostly describes things from his own view and thus obstructs readers from looking at different angles. O'Brien needs to balance between his view and other people's view of life.

The Things They Carried tells us the real true stories of the war in Vietnam, and questions to everyone: what do you live for? This general question does not only belong to soldiers in the battlefield but also belongs to people who are lost in the middle of the road, questioning about life. We do not realize what we want in our lives until we are in need of them. Do you live for your love? Do you live because you do not want to be embarrassed not to live? And he finally makes a general fact of life, "And it's not a movie and you aren't a hero and all you can do is whimper and wait" (211).

I read this book because it got some votes for the best work of American fiction of the past 25 years. It certainly belongs at the top of that list.

O'Brien's stories pack a devastating emotional punch. The opening story vividly paints a picture of the experience of men in war by focusing first on the physical things men carried with them, then the emotional baggage they brought to the conflict, and finally on the angst they leave with. The best story in the collection contrasts a veteran's circuits around his hometown Iowa lake with flashbacks to his experience of the muck in Vietnam. The inability of anyone to understand the veteran's experience and the vet's inability to adapt to civilian life are portrayed more vividly than any story I can recall. Also brilliant are the story of O'Brien's handwringing about how to respond to the draft and a fable about what happens to a hometown girl who visits the front.

What all these stories have in common is complete authenticity of emotion, the fundamental ability to tell a story, and a passion that is often rare in modern ficition.

O'Brien is a self-conscious writer, troubled by the legitimacy of writing fiction, by whether truth can be found in fiction, and by whether amalgamated made-up tales are truer than literal narratives. There is a bit of Dostoyevsky in his wrangling with this theme. He handles this theme well, and as the last story in the book shows, he finds that storytelling is all about coping and saving ourselves.

This is a beautiful book.

This book was an assignment for a college class. I expected nothing out of it but was quite surprised. Vietnam has tons of material already out there about it but somehow the way this book approaches the subject it seems fresh. It was extremely well written and while the much of the subject matter was quite deep it was still an easy read. If this shows up on your reading list for college or high school, don't despair. It reads quickly, will hold your attention and pretty much leaves all of its message right out in the open for you.

The Things They Carried allows the reader to relive O'Brien's experiences in the Vietnam War and learn the various lessons he teaches through them.

A collection of short stories about the experiences of his and his comrades in war, the novel is tied together by the same characters. At times, the stories are exciting, bizarre, sad, and funny. This blend makes the novel unique in its display of all the experiences he faced at war.

It is meaningful as it is a way for him to keep the memories of his deceased comrades alive through his stories. Taking the reader up close to the environment of the war, the novel gives a glimpse of the harsh experiences in war, especially having to be exposed to death often.

He also admits that he writes as a form of therapy for his regrets and scars from the Vietnam War. An interesting point he makes is that "true" war stories are not ones that are based solely on facts, but are ones that have the ability to move a person and impact their life.

An innovative mix of fiction, memoir and nonfiction, this novel gives it's readers a deeper understanding of war and the physical and mental burdens of soldiers. Anyone even slightly interested in war or the effects of it on a soldier or looking for an informative, yet entertaining, book will enjoy this novel.

As a very easy read that depicts the Vietnam War, The Things They Carried is a collection of events written as short stories combined together acting as one narrative. This novel is a combination of fiction and nonfiction with both the incorporation of real members of the Alpha Company, the company that O'Brien fought in, and some exaggerated details. In this haze of reality and imagination, the distinction between the two is difficult to tell, but it is what makes it interesting.

O'Brien begins the novel with a very enticing account of what each soldier brought with him to Vietnam; however, the main point O'Brien is expressing is the one thing that everyone carried that burdened them the most, guilt; guilt from killing, guilt from deaths that could have been prevented, and guilt from weakness and fear. Many aspects of this novel deal with death and the guilt from these deaths. Chapters are dedicated to Norman Bowker and the heavy guilt that he is burdened with when he unintentionally kills Kiowa and when he gives up and does not save him. Years after the war, Bowker commits suicide because he felt that there was nothing to live for after the war. The war consumed his life.

In one chapter, O'Brien discusses his emotions after he kills a Vietnamese man. He attempts to convey the guilt that he felt and the sorrow that dominated his mind. This subject stayed with him throughout the war and even with him years after the war. This guilt from murdering a man plagues him as depicted when he does not know how to respond to his daughter when she asks if he has ever killed anyone.

This novel is well written and thoroughly illustrates the war and its consequences and effects. It gives a soldiers perspective of the war and how it greatly influences their lives. It also contains O'Brien's reflections of the war and his actions. Overall, this is an amazing book that portrays the Vietnam War through little narratives.

O'Brien combines multiple short stories, each with its own plot to create the masterful The Things They Carried. Trying out a new take on war story telling, O'Brien tells a story and then immediately afterwards contradicts this story to create the ever present sense of uncertainty, constantly keeping the reader thinking and never allowing the story to come to a resolute conclusion. This constant feeling of uncertainty is essential to conveying the confusion and chaos which surrounded the soldiers of the controversial Vietnam War. This novel's ability to force upon the reader the feelings of the soldiers may cause confusion at first, but also is what sets this book apart from all other war stories.
Unexpected and engaging, O'Brien unceasingly changes the story on the reader, adding new details and subtracting others. Although this is confusing at first, the reader begins to expect these frequent changes in story, further conveying the exact uncertainty of the kids at war. By not tying the stories up nicely and leaving them open ended and unsure, O'Brien keeps the reader engaged and ever wondering what will happen to these soldiers, making the book a seemingly light read despite there being several thought provoking topics. This ability to capture the reader's attention and to place them into the environment of the people in the story is what makes The Things They Carried a great story, after all isn't a story supposed to be exactly that.

Most of us will never be in a war zone battlefield. For those who have, I salute you for your honorable duty. But for those who have not, all we have are instances of storytelling. Tim O' Brien skillfully weaves a web of these tales into one master collection, recounting realistic stores from the Vietnam War.

Depicting the physical burdens each soldier bears, O' Brien introduces the novel simply with their grunt work. But as the story progresses, all the tangible factors become insignificant compared to the heavy responsibility and knowledge of a comrade's death. The story integrates a cornucopia of emotions that each character struggles with to coincide with all the trauma and chaos.

Starting with Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the author explains the leader's personal conflicts. Distracted by thoughts of his girl back at home, the commander blames himself for the death of Tad Lavender. Following that, Rat Kiley, the normally calm and cool medic, explodes in a fury of sentiments when his close friend Curt Lemon is blown to pieces by a booby trap. Yet another soldier, Norman Bowker suffers from post-traumatic stress, constantly visualizing the scene where he had failed to save his friend Kiowa from the muck of the s*** field.

The war stories are presented in a personal portrayal, revealing the intrinsic values and actions of many soldiers. Expressing the story in a narrative perspective, O' Brien reminisces in his novel about the gruesome, yet profound events of the underappreciated Vietnam War.

Set in the backdrop of the Vietnam War, The Things they Carried is a composite of stories narrated by Tim O'Brien. While the book comes across as a war novel, it is superior to others of this genre, as O'Brien's insights into the past also serve as lessons for his readers on life, love, friendship, and morals.
O'Brien himself is the perfect example of the clash between the ideals held by the proponents and opponents of the Vietnam War. He, on one hand, is a college graduate and represents the typical intellectual who resists the war, but reluctantly enters the war upon the draft. While he stands firmly against the war, he is a confused college graduate whose future is unknown, and blindly enters the war to avoid the embarrassment not to. In some way, entering the war geographically and mentally separates O'Brien from his unknown future, and offers him a time to discover who he really is. Because he withstands ideals from both sides however, he becomes conflicted throughout the war in his journey of self-discovery. This problem is perhaps best illustrated through one of the prevalent themes in the novel, that all unknowingly carry burdens of their own. In O'Brien's case, his burden comes from self-identity and insecurity - on the battlefield, he is just as confused as he is at home. It would not be until many years later when he finally makes a mental trip to revisit his past that he rediscovers the lessons he should have learnt.
While the stories contain in-depth moral lessons of their own, O'Brien's tendency to jump from the past to present, or vice versa, often confuses me in the reading of the book. Therefore, it might be easier for a reader to perceive the stories separately, instead of grouping them together as a whole. Overall, O'Brien's use of realism in these stories impresses me the most, as his careful attention to detail puts on a human face amidst the 10,000 day war.

Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried is a well-written account of Vietnam, albeit a repetitive and overly-extended one.

The overall plot is fragmented and skips between past and present, which can be effective when used sparingly. O'Brien's usage instead gives a sense of the author being lost and without direction. To be honest this work felt more like a disjointed set of short stories than one whole, and it was not surprising to see that many of them were actually first published as such in Esquire.

When I began reading this novel I was immediately intrigued by O'Brien's parallelism in his sentences, many of which begin with, "they carried." But by the tenth iteration it began to become a headache. Novelty does not sustain The Things They Carried for very long, and fairly soon there is only the deadpan tone to deal with. Understandably this is a war novel based on memoir, and it would be ludicrous to give the war too great of a dramatic flair, but this still does not excuse O'Brien's style--of the variety which seems to flow along without break, rarely ever placing conversation inside quotes, without any exclamations, continuing drearily along, good for short stories, but torturous for 246 page work. The author still seems to be caught in a reverie years after the events he describes, without having gained much insight in those years in-between besides that he was a coward for not running away to Canada.

The best part of this novel is the detail. His lists of the items which his platoon carried is intriguingly miscellaneous in otherwise bland scenarios. Many say that his stories are convincing, but men do not usually die by getting shot in the head while zipping up, and girls are not usually shipped to war zones or join the Green Berets.

Oftentimes as one reads a novel one's attachment to the story grows, so that when the end approaches the author can make allusions to details in the beginning, occasionally with a gut-wrenching effect. As I read this novel my interest in it peaked early and then became dimmer and dimmer as it continued. The last sentence is profound, but when I read it I felt less a sense of regret than a sense of relief that the monotonous journey was over. It should have remained a short story or vignette. O'Brien's daughter Kathleen makes the case when she comments on O'Brien's preoccupation: "And that's bad?"--"No. That's weird."

I happened to find this book in a pile of other books my mother had bought from a second hand store. I picked it up and started to read it, and I couldn't put it down. At the time, I was home on leave for 2 weeks from the Army. When I returned from leave, I would be deploying to Iraq. This book helped me realize, and eliminate some of the fears I had of going to war. Well, I'm in Iraq and have 4 more months to go. I plan to re-read this book when i get home and see how my experience relates to his. I highly encourage for anybody & everybody to pick up this book.

This is a devastating account of war, written beautifully and with humor and insight. Our book club was overwhelmed by this fictional account; it should be required reading for everyone.

Tim O'brien tells a good story, and mixes in fact--or the illusion of fact--and fiction skillfully. Still, sometimes the fiction just didn't work for me; most notably, when one of the soldier's girlfriends came and turned from cheerleader type to bush-soldier extraordinarie. I understand the methaphor/aim of this, but it seemed over the top. For a pitch-perfect wonderful, fact/memoir of Vietnam, I think IN PHAROH'S ARMY is a masterpiece. If you're not familiar with Tobias Wolff, you're in for a treat.

I'm not one for war books--especially books about Viet Nam. But I found that The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien was engrossing, touching and easily readable.

The first chapter in The Things They Carried deals with just that--the many things the soldiers in Viet Nam carried in their pockets and on their person. These items varied from personal items (photos, letters, nail clippers, candy, socks, etc.) to military equipment (helmets, rifles, radios, etc.). The majority of the book deals with the intangibles that they carried as well. "They carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die. Grief, terror, love, longing--these were the intangibles."

O'Brien was headed for graduate school at Harvard when he received his draft notice in the summer of 1968. After a mini-breakdown, O'Brien reluctantly reported for duty for a war he didn't support and afraid of camping out, tents, dirt, mosquitoes, blood and authority. Yet once he became a soldier in Nam, he found it a defining event in his life and one that still haunts him today. O'Brien deals with the complexity of war and the conflicting emotions that war evokes. "War is hell, but that's not the half of it, because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage and discovery and holiness and pity and despair and longing and love...in truth war is also beauty."

Viet Nam may be O'Brien's passion, yet it has also proven to be a gift. He has written a number of books about the war (both fiction and nonfiction), and he even won the National Book Award for Going After Cacciato. While not a fan of war books, I'm now a big fan of Tim O'Brien.

i ordered this book a month ago and it still has not come. i need it for my college class!!!!!

I was forced to read this book for class but I am certainly glad I did. The book gave first person insight on the personal aspects of the Vietnam War, not just the obvious blood and guts. Stories of women snuck in to the base, lost loves, and interaction with the natives all highlighted the other side of war, not just the trenches, although those aspects are illustrated as well. Fascinating read.

A book, a novel, a collection of stories and reflections and corrections about war, post-war, pre-war; writing about war and about writing about war. Meta war literature.
This sounds formalistic, but it never is. It grips you.
The biggest surprise for me here is that I never heard about Tim O'Brien and his Vietnam books until now. Or maybe, I did hear about them but I ignored or forgot them. The title 'If I Die in a Combat Zone' somehow does ring a bell. How did I encounter it now? My daughter, a senior and good in lit, wrote a paper about it. She got an A- and let me read it. First the paper and then the book. Well done, daughter.
Footnote: contrary to O'Brien who invents a daughter called Kathleen and has dialogues with her, I really have a daughter, but her name is not Kathleen. Kathleen is possibly the weakest invention of the book, maybe not in concept, but the actual dialogues are wrong. Maybe TOB should have practiced?
A word re my headlines: the Mary Anne story is awesome. And the Lemon Tree is one of the weirdest lines in the books, though my choice of song title is an anachronism. The book certainly refers to the older Lemon Tree song: very pretty...

This is a moving book. A beautiful metaphor for a title. "The things they carried" sums up what this is about - the hopes and fears these soldiers brought, and took away, from war.

Tim's style jumps - there are times when you feel like he is "writing like a novel writer", with the usual eloquence, well-thought out structure expected from a great work of fiction. The first part of the book is in this style and is great in it's own way.

However, there are times when you can feel like you are reading his private journal. You can sense that he is not writing for me or for you in that moment, but rather for himself - to remember, to just make sense of it all. In these parts, the writing is so raw and honest it is hard to imagine not being moved. His fears, the sense of hope, and finally the courage, become real. (Specifically the portion where he was contemplating escaping the draft.) Sometimes I felt like I was just reading my own journal because of his voice...those were the most powerful moments and for that alone, worth the whole book.

An amazing book that succeeds in portraying what it was like for the ones who were sent to Vietnam. The difficulty of the telling shows through as the story comes out in pieces that ultimately are woven together for an intense read. There are some gruesome scenes and brutal actions that you come to understand are just normal under the extreme circumstances of war. Fantastic storytelling that shares what these soldiers have to carry inside them.

This is a must-read book. The Things They Carried constantly forces the reader to question the nature of Truth. Is this real? Could this have possibly happened? Is he lying here? What IS real?
And... in the end... does it really matter?

This book also brings the reader closer to the war in Vietnam, which was a tough time and also, for many, a very confusing time in American History. This book does not, however, present the reader with a historical/political view of the war. No. It brings the reader face to face with the everyday soldier. It brings out some of the horrible realities of the war that future generations could have no clue about.
Finally, this book brings home the message that war is not "romantic." It's horrible. It's bloody. And, all too often there is no glory in war, no honor... IT JUST IS.

'The Things They Carried' is the 2007 selection for the Eden Prairie Reads initiative. I was a little hesitant at first, unsure of how well I'd enjoy a collection of Vietnam War stories. The book is less about gunfire and battles won or lost, and more of a peek inside the head of the men involved - doubt, terror, obsession, camaraderie, death, survival instinct, the psychological turmoil of going home, and ultimately, for some, closure.

Although considered a work of fiction, one gets the feeling that all of the stories have some basis in reality. In fact, several times the author refers to himself as being present in the stories. As a reader, I felt some frustrating in not being able to determine what was true.

or should I say this book read like Tim O'Brien's memoir "If I die in a combat zone" "The things they carried" is a fictional account of being in and out of the Vietnam War, it was worth the read..the two books overlap a lot!

Overall, I was not impressed by Tim O'Brien's book, The Things They Carried. The book does contain some entertaining stories, for example, when O'Brien listed all the items and the little superstitions of the men in his platoon. Throughout the rest of the book he writes scattered stories, some of which are admittedly false. The way Tim O'Brien weaves facts and fiction into his war stories does not appeal to me. He concludes that Vietnam was a waste of life and money, but then lies while writing about such a serious subject. I feel this was a very inappropriate and does not do justice to the other veterans of the Vietnam War. On the whole, I feel the book was horribly written and is unable to grasp a reader and incapable of giving you the desire to keep reading.

Writing about the experiences of War, O'brien mixes his distinctive writing style with a fascinating twist in the plot. He incorporates the feelings that the common soldier felt during the War in Vietnam. He illustrates his mixed emotions about a special woman named Martha and his take on killing enemies during the heat of battle. His plot setup, although very unique left me struggling to follow the flow of the story. I would have preferred the traditional plot setup consisting of one beginning and one ending. Each chapter has its own storyline, not leading the reader to the next chapter, rather leaving each chapter to start a new story. For example, one chapter has Kiowa, the native American soldier, drowning in the Song Tra Bong river and the following chapter will have him giving advice to O'brien. Overall the story was a clear depiction of the Vietnam War and the symptoms which accompanied it. Things They Carried is a wonderful book for those interested in war stories or the soldiers who fought in wars. I would recommend this book to both men and women because it contains both feelings of manliness and sensitivity.

The book was in good condition and it was a good Deal

Thank you
Ahmed

O'Brien's work is beautifully written. He turns the ugly face of war to near poetry as he writes his moving tales of Vietnam. At times tearfully sad, O'Brien brings his story to life with personal accounts and stories of life and death struggles. He writes with such honesty, one cannot help but fully realize the changes war makes to a person. This is a book everyone should read.

I have served in Central American Jungles, Balkan Mountains, Central Asian Mountains, and the Middle East.

Tim O'Brien, does an excellent job to capture the literary portrait of combat, for the common person.

He makes acute observations only a combat vet could. I want to thank him and all those who served in Vietnam, and even more so for having the additional courage to tell the story to everyone else, who get a glimpse of war beyond the typical sterotypes, and get to see the complicated mess of humanity and inhumanity ironically woven together, with all of the emotions and psychology that are present on the battlefield.

A superb read, with a very detailed and realistic protrayal. Not many understand, fewer are able to convey that experience so effectively.

I first read two excerpts as short stories and enjoyed them very much, and picked up the novel to see if the same strength of writing continued. It does, for the most part. O'Brien is a very soulful, meditative sort of writer, working with mood and displaced emotion, and he's obviously not afraid to take chances with the form, again with mixed results. I was never sure where he was going, introducing storyline information, then contradicting it a while later. I think it works better if you take each chapter on its own merit, vs. trying to tie them together as a rising narrative, which this isn't. The book drags occasionally, is often sentimental, but once you get used to what he's doing, it's a fine absorbing read, but I didn't really find it a page-turner. Another Vietnam book I read, "American Warrior" has a more classic rising action, and is quite a different experience altogether. It was interesting to compare the two narratives, which cover some of the same ground, but with entirely different results and reading experience. I think both have their merits.

I was assigned to read this book for a college history course. I loved it. I read it in about four or five sittings (unusual for me). I stayed up until 2 AM reading it. The book is made up of chapters that were previously short stories published in magazines. This makes it easier to read. The story moves along very well. I especially loved the chapter "Sweetheart (?) of the Son Tra Bong". VERY moving chapter! Throughout the book I kept wondering how fictional this really was - it seemed real based on other non-fiction stuff I read. You've got to read this. I'm planning on reading his book "If I Die In The Combat Zone" because of "Things They Carried." Vietnam and lovers of history should get this book and read it.

Tim O'Brien's writing is almost poetry. The way he uses language continuously amazes me. He writes so beautifully about the traumatic experience of war.

I absolutely enjoyed reading every page of this book. It is very well written, and easy to pick up for anyone interested in reading. After reading this book in record time (for myself, that is), I've been motivated to read Tim O'Brien's other works. I recommend this book to anyone that is interested in modern literature on the attitudes of people during the Vietnam War.

Based on the reviews and as a history teacher I approached this book looking for a war memoire wrapped in a literary masterpiece. Our English department has the students read this book around the same time the history department covers the history/politics/etc of the Vietnam War.

The book itself is a literary masterpiece, melding various literary techniques into a gripping and compelling read that students and adults will enjoy. In that regard, I'd give it 4.5 stars.

However, from a historical perspective, it fails in my opinion. The stories are gripping, and range from unusual to bizarre and often. Just as he convinces you that it may have happened, he tells you it didn't. The book really doesn't get into a lot of detail of how troops served and suffered in Vietnam, nor does it get into any historical or political significance of the war, nor does it even present a real detailed view of the veterans' tribulations afterwards. In short, this book is more a literary work designed for interesting reading than for any deep discussion of the Vietnam War. If you approach this book looking for a war memoire, skip it. On that note, I'd rate it a 0 or a 1. I'll compromise and rate it a 3 overall.

From a teaching perspective, the ease of reading, the smooth literary skills, and the wild stories all make this book a great entry for students thinking about the Vietnam War. They come into history class with lots of questions after reading this book and it opens up a lot of great discussion and teaching opportunities. Well worth reading as an introduction to Vietnam but people with an existing and/or deep knowledge of the military history of the Vietnam War need to know that the War takes a back seat to the literary storytelling exercise this book is.

Not only do I love this book, my students really enjoy this book as well. Simply reading small sections in class has convinced a number of my students to take up the entire book for their own reading enjoyment. It's also a great way to get modern history in the classroom, which unfortunately often gets neglected in our schools today.

Before this novel, my modest reading on Vietnam included some outstanding, yet relatively traditional works, such as "A Rumor of War", "Dispatches", and straight non-fiction histories. Into the gap comes "The Things They Carried", with its creative and unusual organization and style. How I missed this book escapes me, as even my daughter had read it in high school. Good for her, and her teacher.

The chapters range from several that are exceptional and near-exceptional to a few duds. The opening chapter, which named the book, made a great intro that this was not your typical war-time memoir. However, what impressed me most, besides the nature of the stories themselves, was the way many of them succeeded independently while also somehow being tied together, even without a traditional timeline. Characters who were killed earlier re-appeared in subsequent stories on other themes.

"On the Rainy River" didn't really read as if it could have possibly been true. No matter. Beautifully told spin that dances with the Vietnam-era theme of fleeing to Canada. A personal favorite.

"The Lives of the Dead" was a very strong finish, with a moving combination of death in Vietnam and the loss of a childhood friend at age nine. Gulp.

As with many readers, I was repeatedly confused, wondering what was true and what was totally fictitious, and what was somewhere in between. Will the real Tim O'Brien please stand up? Eventually I just shrugged and did a little background reading on O'Brien and the book in order to satisfy some curiosity, and left it at that. The lack of a line between reality and fiction is of course part of the charm of the novel, so one mustn't think too hard about the truth. O'Brien says himself in the wonderful "How to Tell a True War Story": "In war you lose your sense of the definite, hence your sense of truth itself, and therefore it's sate to say that in a true war story nothing is ever absolutely true."

Tim O'Brien made "The Things They Carried" remarkably enjoyable by narrating powerful stories that embarked on the effects of war and its encounters. This is a novel of interconnected stories that is not part of one central plot. Each chapter describes the experiences of various soldiers and their emotional and mental side effects from the Vietnam War. The novel describes more than just the "things" the soldiers carried; it refers to the burden they carry inside after the war. The soldiers are never once left at peace after experiencing the fear, isolation, and dismay of war. The well structured anecdotes and well written imagery grasp readers through an unforgettable journey. "The Things They Carried" is a beautiful and impressive literature.

What's effective about this novel is the author's style in carrying out his stories in the form of re-telling his memory. The multiple events that are written in the novel are not specific in time or follow a timeline. It is composed of pieces of memories weaving into a novel. In the style of story-telling, O'Brien's anecdotes take the readers back and forth in time observing all the aspect that appears in ones mind as memories. Such as telling the story of a soldier who died, but then he tells another part of O'Brien's memory where the soldier was still alive. The stories do not necessarily follow up on the details after another story end, but to function as memories and telling how certain fear and death affects a soldier in the mist of war at different time. This style of memories does not contain the complete truth.

A major theme that is portrayed in this novel is the "truth" behind every story. One of the most enjoyable chapters to read was "How to Tell a True War Story." The chapter carries out the point to which the author tries to convey. The author's point is that a true war story does not have the complete truth nor does it have morals, but it tells what happens to the soldiers in certain perspective. There are certain truths, but often are tainted from perception and age and are elaborated to make the stories seem surreal. This idea sparks the thought of whether this work of fiction could hide some truth. Whether these memories were actual occurrences or invention of imagination stands on a thin line through O'Brien's stories. Although "The Things They Carried" is a work of fiction, the stories he tell captures the reader's mindset through its authenticity.

Its authenticity is through the stories that develop the character's mental and emotional condition. Each of the members of the platoon unit Alpha Company has a story, a past, and a future that is affected by the experience of the war. The things they carried during the war consisted of tangible objects that represented their position in the platoon and their hope for the future. Following the war, they carried nothing more but the troubling guilt and horrifying memories of fear and death. The things they carried are the consequences of the war for the rest of their lives. For characters such as Jimmy Cross, he carried with him notes which he imagined as "love notes" from his college crush to help him survive. But it was this thought that strayed his attention and caused a fellow soldier to die, thus this incident placed upon a guilt that continued to live on in Cross' mind. Another character is Tim O'Brien who carried the thoughts of murdering people on the battlefield. The imagery in the chapter "The Man I Killed" was horrifying and effective in showing the atrocious side of war. The physical attributes that the character O'Brien described of the victim he killed and the fantasies he created for the victim showed his guilt in killing a boy who was someone and could be someone of potentials. Ironically, in this chapter the author portrayed the beauty of life.

Whether it's hinting towards the beauty of life within the ugliness of war, the author does not fail to get the idea across that soldiers leave the war with burdens. After reading so many assigned books for my IB English class, I finally sat down to read a novel I enjoy reading. This novel is enjoyable for the author's use of anecdotes, style of re-creating memory, and the effects of imagery. The way the story is told is very unique and straightforward. I would recommend this novel to just about anyone.


--P. Tran

This book is so well written and the stories are so gripping emotionally and such a nice and candid look inside the Vietnam Conflict and what weight those soldiers had to carry - physically and mentally - I could not put it down and actually read it in a single day. I haven't read O'Brien's other works, but this collection of stories exceeded my expectations. I am a veteran myself and I know dealing with things seen and done is often difficult for anyone who has experienced war or life in the military. Two thumbs way up for this triumphant effort.

I loved this book, it is actually a compilation of stories, and not a book though. I love how Tim O'Brien writes. I loved his view on war in the story "On the Rainy River." If you would like to learn some things about Vietnam, or read it while you are learning about Vietnam then you will love it. It is an amazing book, and I can't tell you how much I loved it.

You should definitely read it,
Loran

This book should be required reading for anyone who had a friend or relation who experienced the war in Vietnam or knows someone serving in our current conflicts with Iraq and Afghanistan. I do not like 'war books' but picked up this one at a library on the recommendation of a friend. I have since purchased it to add to my personal collection. The writing is superb, the imagery is gripping, and the emotions of war are crystal clear. The conflict in those who served in Nam is well-illustrated through this book--- how the comraderie is formed, why soldiers feel anyone who was not there cannot ever understand them, the beauty of the country, and the cruelty and magnificence combined that makes up war.

Moving, emotional, and masterfully crafted, this book is a must-read. I gave a copy to a friend of our family who is a Vietnam veteran, and he wrote me a beautiful letter when he finished the book. He said that after all these years, he was starting to heal. The author of The Things They Carried understood what he was feeling and put it into words as he could not.

There's little about this book that hasn't been said here, but I'll try.

I first heard about "The Things They Carried" while in college, and I just wasn't interested. War, schmar. I'd seen war movies, and there were plenty of books out there about soldiers and what they do.

Years later and a little older, I'd heard the book mentioned so many times that I had to get it. (How can you say you love English and writing and then, in the same breath, admit you've never read O'Brien's most famous work? Well, you can't.)

There's a lot I like about the book, but these four things in particular put it in with the small stack of books I simply won't part with:

1. His technique. First person all the way through, but unless he makes a point of reminding you that the narrator is talking, you forget. At least, I forgot.

2. The little things that are so huge they can make you cry. For example: the emotionless observation of the baby buffalo; Rat, who puts his soul in a letter to a girl who doesn't write back; the "simple" question of going this way or that way, and what it means to do either.

3. Sometimes, nothing is made more true than when a layer of fiction is applied. I believe you can feel more truth in fiction than you often can in non-fiction, because strict non-fiction has a way of keeping that personal distance between reader and writer. "This is MY story," non-fiction says. "You may have gone through something similar, but this is MINE." O'Brien's fiction invites someone like me, who has never (and likely will never) experience a soldier's war, to see (at least in some small part) war from the point of view of one fighting it. It's not an accounting of a string of events, but a trip into the psyche.

4. This: "Absolute occurrence is irrelevant. A thing may happen and be a total lie; another thing may not happen and be truer than the truth" (83).Homefront