The Things They Carried: Tim O'Brien

For my junior year in high school English class, I chose to take AP English & Literature. (I thought I was challenging myself, not killing myself...) We were constantly required to read novels and annotate them every single day. Many months ago, (I know it has been a while) we were expected to read a book called The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. It is a powerful story with an innovative view on war, the many memories the soldiers carry with them,  and what they imagine throughout the war and the rest of their lives. This mind-changing book sold over two million copies in print and has been influencing lives since March 28, 1990. This book is about a platoon of American soldiers in the Vietnam War and each of its chapters is a short story based off of a true event. Tim O'Brien purposely uses real names of his comrades and also includes himself in this novel. This means that this book is full of metafiction, a technique that authors use in order to mix and blur the line between fiction and non-fiction.

There are many people that think this novel is the best work of fiction ever written about the Vietnam War. Some people even believe that it's the best fictitious book ever written about war. The author, Tim O'Brien, was opposed to war but in 1968 he was drafted. He had originally considered running off to Canada to avoid going to war (just like the character in the novel!). But in the end, he decided against it and instead reluctantly headed off to war. He was sent off to war, survived, and went back to study at Harvard. He was eventually able to return home to Minnesota.

In 1990, Tim O'Brien published this book. The novel was so successful that it won the Pulitzer Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the French Prix du Meilleur Livre Etranger. With how much this book has impacted me, I truly think it deserved all those awards.

I realize for many of my classmates this was among one of their most disliked novels, I would argue against that as I absolutely enjoyed the book. If you've had a chance to read this fantastic novel be sure to leave a comment on what your thoughts on the book are, whether you enjoyed it or not, and if you might recommend it to others.