(Published 1948, Mass Market Paperback edition 559 pages)
Mr. Mailer's World War Two book is centered on the thoughts of about a dozen
soldiers and officers engaging in a 6000-man U.S. operation to defeat about 5000
Japanese combatants on a Pacific island called Anopopei. The book is purely a
male driven enterprise. The few women portrayed are superficial and only come
into play during flashbacks about the different characters. All the people from
Major General Cummings, who is in control of the operation, to the most lowly
grunt in the trenches are struggling with insecurities. Mr. Mailer took pains in
convincingly depicting men from a wide variety of backgrounds. You have a few
who are intelligent and others (mostly the grunts) that aren't so swift. One
character named Ridges is about as smart as a brick. The actions of the Japanese
remain a mystery throughout the story.
The author did an outstanding job in describing the thoughts of these various men during war. The officers are more focused on the logistics where the Army grunts are simply pawns on a chess board. Empathy for the American soldiers in the jungle certainly isn't their strong suit. The grunts are living in extremes of either being terrified or bored out of the friggin' minds. With this book, you need to be patient. About two-thirds of this large baby is fleshing out the different characters before placing them in an ordeal that tests the limits of all the men. I could see how the motivations of the men was going to be a problem if they got into a moral pickle and that is exactly what happens. FUBAR (Fucked Up Beyond All Reason) raises its ugly head. There are a few moments of deep suspense, but mostly it's a book of ruminations. Mr. Mailer's story is not for the reader who is looking for something similar to the action movies The Dirty Dozen or The Guns of Navarone. It is a thought-provoking classic only for people interested in reading about the mindset of men during the 1940s.
The author did an outstanding job in describing the thoughts of these various men during war. The officers are more focused on the logistics where the Army grunts are simply pawns on a chess board. Empathy for the American soldiers in the jungle certainly isn't their strong suit. The grunts are living in extremes of either being terrified or bored out of the friggin' minds. With this book, you need to be patient. About two-thirds of this large baby is fleshing out the different characters before placing them in an ordeal that tests the limits of all the men. I could see how the motivations of the men was going to be a problem if they got into a moral pickle and that is exactly what happens. FUBAR (Fucked Up Beyond All Reason) raises its ugly head. There are a few moments of deep suspense, but mostly it's a book of ruminations. Mr. Mailer's story is not for the reader who is looking for something similar to the action movies The Dirty Dozen or The Guns of Navarone. It is a thought-provoking classic only for people interested in reading about the mindset of men during the 1940s.
Meyers - A few years ago, I
started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short
reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #317)
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