Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
A tour of duty for a young soldier in Vietnam is vividly presented in Myers's exceptional novel. Ages 13-up. (May)
School Library Journal
Gr 10 Up A riveting account of the Vietnam War from the perspective of a young black soldier. Richie Perry, a 17 year old from Harlem, arrrives in Vietnam in 1967. His first-person narrative provides an immediacy to the events and characters revealed. His experiences become readers' experiences, as do his fears and his insight about this war, any war. ``We spent another day lying around. It seemed to be what the war was about. Hours of boredom, seconds of terror.'' During one of those terrifying times, a large number of American soldiers are killed. Because they cannot be carried back, the decision is made to burn the bodies. ``I was afraid of the dead guys. I saw them, arms limp, faces sometimes twisted in anguish, mostly calm, and I was afraid of them. They were me. We wore the same uniform, were the same height, had the same face. They were me, and they were dead.'' In the end, when Richie is wounded, he returns home. This is a compelling, graphic, necessarily gruesome, and wholly plausible novel. It neither condemns nor glorifies the war but certainly causes readers to think about the events. Other difficult issues, such as race and the condition of the Vietnamese people, are sensitively and realistically incorporated into the novel. The soldiers' language is raw, but appropriate to the characters. This is a book which should be read by both young adults and adults. Maria B. Salvadore, District of Columbia Public Library
FEBRUARY 2016 - AudioFile
J.D. Jackson brings listeners directly into the jungles of Vietnam with 17-year-old African-American Richie Perry and his fellow soldiers in Walter Dean Myers’s classic story of boys and war. Death is an inevitable companion, bringing the pain of loss and a longing to return to “the world,” no matter how difficult it may have been. Jackson ably navigates the rough language, racism, and xenophobia that are the realities of the story. A few production missteps do not detract from the deep bonds that form among the boys as they struggle to keep themselves alive despite the ineptitude and hubris of army leadership. Once again, we journey into the incomprehensible landscape of war. S.G. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
