Bestsellers: Vietnam, a hot topic after all these years
It's been 35 years since the evacuation of the American embassy in Vietnam, but readers are still intrigued by the conflict. Denis Johnson's 600-plus page "Tree of Smoke" won the 2007 National Book Award. And now first-time novelist Karl Marlantes, a former Marine, has made a full-scale advance on the fiction bestseller list with "Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War," entering at No. 14. The 622-page book, which took three decades to write, revise and get published, is the story of Waino Mellas, a wide-eyed, idealistic Ivy Leaguer who volunteers for the Marines. Mellas find himself immersed in combat in humid, insect-infested jungles, going days without sleep or food and wondering if he’ll ever make it home in one piece. Even in 1969, in a "bad" war, soldiers fighting in Vietnam could seek glory and valor, and could be heroic.
After narrowly missing the nonfiction list the last few weeks, actor Jeff Garlin's "My Footprint" finally made the cut, entering at No. 14. The comedian shares his attempt at a lifestyle makeover in which he devoted the filming of an entire season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" to losing weight and going green (past the point of mere recycling).
Maybe Garlin can pick up a few pointers on aging gracefully from the stunning Raquel Welch. The sex symbol, who turns 70 this year, reveals her beauty secrets in the part memoir, part beauty guide, "Raquel: Beyond the Cleavage," which lands at No. 9. The actress expresses her views on love, sex, style, health, career and family with little bio bits scattered throughout, including her memorable turn as a cavewoman clad in a fur bikini in "One Million Years, B.C."
Things that make you go hmm: It seems New Yorkers are more interested in who will be the next governor of California than local voters. "Mount Pleasant," aspiring gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner’s memoir of his yearlong stint teaching 12th-graders at a San Jose high school, reached No. 5 on the New York Times bestseller list -- yet barely made a dent with Southern California readers.
-- Liesl BradnerPhoto: Marines carry a wounded soldier to a helicopter during a firefight with North Vietnamese troops July 29, 1967. Credit: National Archives / Agence France-Presse
If you want to read some great literature about the Vietnam War, I'd suggest Michael Herr's "Dispatches," Gloria Emerson's "Winners and Losers," the various books by Tim O'Brien, and Philip Caputo's "A Rumor of War." If you want to read about Vietnam before the war, try "L'Amant/The Lover" by M. Duras and "The Quiet American."
Posted by: MikeOHara | April 21, 2010 at 09:28 PM
You mean you are surprised that was possible to be heroic in Vietnam? Where have you all been all these years? Smoking pot and reminiscing about the anti-war protests? Even in 1969, our young men and women went forward and fought in a war that no one believed in anymore. I served with many of them during my career in the US Army and I'm proud to have known them. They were not "losers", but patriots who believed in our country and our cause.
In 1969, I remember hearing over and over from the draft dodgers and anti-war protesters how they detested the war, yet were willing to step up and defend their country if we were invaded. Well, 9-11 has happened and where are they now? They're back in the street because now they have another "cause" to protest. What hypocrites and cowards!
Now we have writers and journalists from that era trying to justify their anti-war stand against a growing realization that the war was justified, just not executed very well, and that our servicemen were unfairly mistreated and demonized. As time goes by, the anti-war crowd will become more isolated and maligned despite their attempts to justify their cowardice.
For good novels about the war that give you a realistic view from the grunt level, read "The 13th Valley" by John Del Vacchio, "The Lionheads" by Josiah Bunting or "When The Buffalo Fight" by Lex McAulay. These authors avoid the "artistic" approach to talking about what it was like to fight in Vietnam. You'll be surprised to find that our servicemen were just as heroic as their dads were in WWII and Korea, or their grandads in WWI.
So don't treat our Vietnam Veterans as if they were victims. Treat them as they truly are - national heroes.
Posted by: JR | April 22, 2010 at 06:56 AM