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FortWorthReader, January 2, 2013 (view all comments by FortWorthReader)
I have looked at every soldier differently after reading this book. Well written, a stab in the heart to read, The Yellow Birds has changed me forever, as did Johnny Got His Gun years ago. An important book for everyone to read.
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bohola1959, January 1, 2013 (view all comments by bohola1959)
This debut novel captures the emotional turmoil suffered by soldiers in the Iraq War and their ongoing struggles when they come home. Kevin Powers' novel is beautifully written, even poetic. He shows what cameras cannot - the questions, the fears, the bravery, the uneasiness of being called heroes. Highly recommended.
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Mark Dostert, January 1, 2013 (view all comments by Mark Dostert)
American is fortunate to have an Iraq War veteran so talented. Every war needs a Tim O'Brien. Maybe Powers has assumed that role for this recent war. What an opportunity to inhabit the point-of-view of a solider on the ground in this war that will be with us, over there and back here at home, for a long, long time.
Product details
pages
Little Brown and Company -
English9780316219365
Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review"
by Publishers Weekly,
"This moving debut from Powers (a former Army machine gunner) is a study of combat, guilt, and friendship forged under fire. Pvt. John Bartle, 21, and Pvt. Daniel Murphy, 18, meet at Fort Dix, N.J., where Bartle is assigned to watch over Murphy. The duo is deployed to Iraq, and the novel alternates between the men's war zone experiences and Bartle's life after returning home. Early on, it emerges that Murphy has been killed; Bartle is haunted by guilt, and the details of Murphy's death surface slowly. Powers writes gripping battle scenes, and his portrait of male friendship, while cheerless, is deeply felt. As a poet, the author's prose is ambitious, which sets his treatment of the theme apart — as in this musing from Bartle: 'though it's hard to get close to saying what the heart is, it must at least be that which rushes to spill out of those parentheses which were the beginning and end of my war.' The sparse scene where Bartle finally recounts Murphy's fate is masterful and Powers's style and story are haunting. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
"Review"
by Tom Wolfe,
"The All Quiet on the Western Front of America's Arab wars."
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