Margaret Vandenburg
Auteur de An American in Paris
Œuvres de Margaret Vandenburg
Étiqueté
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Membres
Critiques
Statistiques
- Œuvres
- 3
- Membres
- 25
- Popularité
- #508,561
- Évaluation
- 3.8
- Critiques
- 2
- ISBN
- 17
The details of battlefield tactics and weapons feel awesomely authentic, even down to the “shock and awe” of an aerial attack—I never understood why that curious phrase was used, despite TV images, until I read this book. The sniper looks down on life from his roof, uninvolved, unemotional, yet totally responsible to see, inform and act. But this is a sniper who didn’t see the approach of his best friend’s death, didn’t inform, and didn’t act. A dangerous truth bears down over his certainties, and readers will find themselves guessing, through snippets of memory, just where this truth might lead.
The reader’s uncertainty, combined with the character’s unquestioning loyalties, create an intriguing dichotomy in this novel. Political nuance feeds into silences, like life through cracks in the ground. But Billy remains clear-headed and strong, even as the battle for Fallujah rages almost out of control. He relates the stories of his past as convincingly as any other member of the squad—and it’s stories, with all their irreverence and pain, that keep these soldiers sane. He remembers family and friends with appealing honesty. He fights convincingly. And his flashbacks will never deter his aim.
The question, of course, is where the sniper should be aiming. When women might hide hand grenades, and teenagers draw guns; when children, who could hunt game with their fathers, make a game of hunting Americans instead; and when lives are given and lost, who counts the cost?
Weapons of Mass Destruction is a hauntingly beautiful book; a swift read, carried forward with the force of battle; an enthralling read, looking back on childhood’s idylls and teenage hurt; and a convicting read for the present, for all our moral high grounds, political postures, and generous desires, and for freedom wherever it fails.
Disclosure: I was given a free bound galley by the publisher and I offer my honest review.… (plus d'informations)