Hard to read and harder to put down. If you know a soldier you should read this book. ( )

Very intense memoir, brutally honest, and takes us into a world very few are familiar with. It took a lot of guts to write this, in my opinion ( )

I was impressed with this book on several levels, but I couldn't exactly say I enjoyed it nor could I say it was highly engaging for me - - so on some levels it merits more than three stars, but I just couldn't bring myself to confer that fourth one.

In part, I blame the marketing folks. The title of this book really isn't spot on. I feel it is more designed to sell books than it is to reveal the content of this particular book. So my expectation was that I would be taken inside the war and shown things I might not have known or imagined. But I what I found between the pages was more of a well done treatise on the psychological impacts of war . . .and in this regard, I do think Marlantes has a lot of fascinating insights and hypothesis.

He addresses topics such as honor and lying and heroism and loyalty - - and how these things really manifest themselves differently in military life than in civilian life. He also speaks eloquently to the difficulties of readjusting to civilian life after war and examines why this is the case. He's deep, thoughtful, and very insightful on these topics. It was only when he addresses spirituality when he loses me - - perhaps because I'm not a religious person.

All in all, I would recommend the book - - but more so if the title "The Impact of War on the Psyche of Soldiers" grabs you . . . ( )

nonfiction; veterans/military aspects/politics. I think I would've liked this better in print--the spoken narrator (Bronson Pinchot) wasn't my favorite--but well worth reading for anyone--teens, adults, veterans, people who know veterans, new enlistees. You don't have to agree with everything he says 100% (particularly when he waxes philosophical) but you have to admit Marlantes has got a whole lot more perspective than most people, and it's worth hearing his thoughts and opening up these items for discussion. ( )

An absolutely essential book for anyone who is interested in joining the army, or has a family member or friend in the army, or who wants to know what a soldier goes through during war. It really delves into the emotional and psychological whirlwind faced by those who go to war. They should hand these out with the uniforms and make it essential reading. ( )