The Things They Carried

This review is based on the audio version. First let me say, that I generally do not care for short stories, and I have also managed to avoid most books about war. Once I began listening to this book, I would find myself sitting in my car (after having reached my destination) just to hear a bit more. The reader was fabulous and the stories ...all of them....just had me wanting to hear more.

The Things They Carried is a collection of short stories filled with tension. The stories are based on the Vietnam War experience of the author and his buddies. The reader/listener is drawn into each story involving the men of Alpha Company. You feel a part of the bond they have for each other, and you feel their anger, their isolation, loneliness and their fears as you listen to the voices of the soldiers.

This should be required reading for high school students in my opinion.

Tim O'Brien took me to a place I could not have imagined. At long last I now have a bit of insight into why so many of my friends who fought in Viet Nam, have found it so difficult to talk about. Beautifully written. Heart wrenching, exquisite, humbling - each person who served, and came back with even a modicum of sanity is to be cherished by us all, not by just their families and loved ones.

"First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried letters from a girl named Martha . . . ." And I will always carry this book in my heart and mind. It is unforgettable.

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.