Rating: 
Summary: Courage
Review: A thinking man in Vietnam was a dangerous thing. Being a soldier in Vietnam was a dangerous thing. Tim O'Brien was both and somehow he managed to live to survive it and tell his story. He ends up in Vietnam after unsuccessfully dealing with his conflict between doing the right thing and being a courageous man. He tells of his decision not to follow his well planned escape route and stay with his country and its proposal to send him to Viet Nam. O'Brien describes Vietnam as a place with nameless soldiers and Buddys, faceless enemies and endless minefields.This is an excellent text for learning about the experience of the Vietnam war, the choices that young man were faced with at that time and basic dilemmas in making moral decisions. It is a well written book which makes for a quick, satisfying read.
Rating:
Summary: Courage
Review: A thinking man in Vietnam was a dangerous thing. Being a soldier in Vietnam was a dangerous thing. Tim O'Brien was both and somehow he managed to live to survive it and tell his story. He ends up in Vietnam after unsuccessfully dealing with his conflict between doing the right thing and being a courageous man. He tells of his decision not to follow his well planned escape route and stay with his country and its proposal to send him to Viet Nam. O'Brien describes Vietnam as a place with nameless soldiers and Buddys, faceless enemies and endless minefields. This is an excellent text for learning about the experience of the Vietnam war, the choices that young man were faced with at that time and basic dilemmas in making moral decisions. It is a well written book which makes for a quick, satisfying read.
Rating:
Summary: Brutally honest
Review: A vivid description of the day to day life of a grunt in the Vietnam era. O'Brien wrote honestly and at times poetically of his experience from draft day to his return home. Some of the best writing on a thinking man's reaction to combat that I've ever read.
Rating:
Summary: An account of conflict internal and external
Review: A wonderful personal and informative account of O'Brien's tour of duty in Vietnam. The credits on this book mentioned how it helped to explain, without excusing, the behaviour of those involved in the My Lai massacre, a comment that I could only appreciate after reading the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Good
Review: As a Marine grunt(1968) In Vietnam, the book basically gives a good view into daily 'NAM' LIFE. Other reviewers gave a low rating thru their WELL-> READ knowledge of the war. There is a old Vietnam unwritten code "if you were not there, then you have no idea what happened or should not judge the ones who were. Vietnam vets don't talk about our experiences over there because there is no way a civilian could comprehend what we endured". The war was a horrible, minute by minute effort to stay alive but also a duty to protect your fellow marines , your fellow marines were your brothers. Read the book. Semper Fi
Rating:
Summary: A breath-taking account of Vietnam
Review: From the moment I started this book, I could not put it down. Tim O'Brien actually takes us to Vietnam in this true story. This story depicts the evolution of a man in time of war, from the beginning in his home town to the plane ride home.
Rating:
Summary: An Awsome book and a very inspiring book
Review: i personally enjoy this book because it made me rethink about joining the army.
Rating: 
Summary: Purple prose is a bit over the top yet excellent in parts
Review: I'm not a big fan of Tim O'Brien's writing: It's a stylistic thing. I believe that he is neither a natural raconteur nor a gifted observer, either of which is what turns a book into a great read. If you've read much at all about the Vietnam subjective experience you are bound to have come across bits of this book because in it O'Brien does show flashes of pure story telling talent and these bits have been excerpted and published as essays and short stories. The premise of this book is an autobiographical look at the author's life leading up to and including his tour of duty in Vietnam. In it he thoughtfully and sensitively addresses the plethora of social, martial and political elements whirling about the Vietnam theatre of war. Unfortunately, he gets a bit tripped up in his attempts to showcase his Liberal Arts education by interweaving quotations from Socrates through Plato, Homer and various poets into the narrative. I suppose that the point could be made that in doing so he is attempting to demonstrate on the one hand that war and its aftermath and injustice are inseparable and always have been and on the other hand that because of this the Vietnam war and its product is no more or less noble than any of the 'heroic' wars of legend. I'd rather not argue that point, expecially in the context of a memoir of one man's single year of experience of the Vietnam War. What I would argue is that O'Brien's attempts at literary flight fall flat, probably because they have the look and feel of a college essay, or mere highfalutin literary contrivance. In my opinion, O'Brien fails to bridge the gap between legend and the miserable year he spent working as a foot soldier and clerk typist in Vietnam. If you would like to experience examples from each of the two archetypes I refered to above try, for great observational skill the book by Tobias Wolff on his experience in Vietnam titled 'In Pharoah's Army,' and for great storytelling Phillip Caputo's book 'A Rumor of War.' You'll love them both, I'm sure. As for this one, I would only recommend it to fans of puerile sentimentality (altho' who could expect more from a 21 year old?), and those who, like myself, want to expose themselves to just about everything out there on the subject that shows literary promise. In the final analysis, this book promises much but delivers unevenly.
Rating:
Summary: Purple prose is a bit over the top yet excellent in parts
Review: I'm not a big fan of Tim O'Brien's writing: It's a stylistic thing. I believe that he is neither a natural raconteur nor a gifted observer, either of which is what turns a book into a great read. If you've read much at all about the Vietnam subjective experience you are bound to have come across bits of this book because in it O'Brien does show flashes of pure story telling talent and these bits have been excerpted and published as essays and short stories. The premise of this book is an autobiographical look at the author's life leading up to and including his tour of duty in Vietnam. In it he thoughtfully and sensitively addresses the plethora of social, martial and political elements whirling about the Vietnam theatre of war. Unfortunately, he gets a bit tripped up in his attempts to showcase his Liberal Arts education by interweaving quotations from Socrates through Plato, Homer and various poets into the narrative. I suppose that the point could be made that in doing so he is attempting to demonstrate on the one hand that war and its aftermath and injustice are inseparable and always have been and on the other hand that because of this the Vietnam war and its product is no more or less noble than any of the 'heroic' wars of legend. I'd rather not argue that point, expecially in the context of a memoir of one man's single year of experience of the Vietnam War. What I would argue is that O'Brien's attempts at literary flight fall flat, probably because they have the look and feel of a college essay, or mere highfalutin literary contrivance. In my opinion, O'Brien fails to bridge the gap between legend and the miserable year he spent working as a foot soldier and clerk typist in Vietnam. If you would like to experience examples from each of the two archetypes I refered to above try, for great observational skill the book by Tobias Wolff on his experience in Vietnam titled 'In Pharoah's Army,' and for great storytelling Phillip Caputo's book 'A Rumor of War.' You'll love them both, I'm sure. As for this one, I would only recommend it to fans of puerile sentimentality (altho' who could expect more from a 21 year old?), and those who, like myself, want to expose themselves to just about everything out there on the subject that shows literary promise. In the final analysis, this book promises much but delivers unevenly.
Rating:
Summary: This book is one of the best I have ever read
Review: In this book, Tim O'Brien tells the story of Vietnam with his own personal experiences. This story is written straight from the heart. You really feel this mans pain as you read it. I recommend it to all.
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