ISBN: 0-679-60305-0 Order from: Amazon.com
An ironic, elaborate novel of America in the middle of World War II, almost plotless, but with a remarkably skilled portrayal of the very human parts in the massive military machine build-up.
Reviewed by David on March 28, 1999
Genre: Non-genre Fiction (Military, War)
Synopsis: Showing 3 days in 1943, this novel traces the lives of a dozen people on an US Air Force base in Florida. Without a single scene of combat, the overwhelming shadow of war hangs over all of these people, showing with a sharp, detailed focus both the culture of this near past, so different from today's, and the human nature, ageless in its variation and adaptation to stress.
Full Review: This novel of 1943 shows very clearly both the very different nature of America's accomodation with racism two generations ago, and the seeds of the changes since then. More than that, it shows the stresses of the war in a place far away from actual combat. From the scars, physical and emotional on the young veterans, to the stresses on civilians torn from their lives and families and placed in a huge, often inefficient and brutal bureaucracy, to the almost casual death that lurks in even peaceful exercise of the tools of war.
The book shows people with remarkable, almost painful accuracy. Every actor in this little play is a mixture of motives, skills and hopes. A heroic pilot is also an almost uncontrollable brawler. A brave, modest and intelligent soldier who is also, by his upbringing, a deeply ingrained bigot.
This is a book without villains, where most people do their best to accomodate the enormous dislocation of war. Some do better than others. Some snatch moments of happiness, while others spend time in fear and frustration. All make mistakes: some result in heartbreak, others invite death.
There is the pressure of lust, jealousy and shame, and the more subtle feeling of compassion, uniting and dividing the women on the base and the male majority. The subtle irony of the prose, as well as at once compassionate and unsentimental tone, makes for utterly believable characters, both men and women.
The book succeeds admirably in portraying the period, but lags noticeably in entertainment. The plot is essentially nonexistent, there mostly to allow the author do show the thousands of people on an air base. The prolonged explorations of each person's thoughts, fears and memories make the novel drag in many places. The head-hopping allows little leasure to get involved with a character.
While the book certainly does not lack for human interest, it matches neither the excitement and fear of combat scenes, nor the emotional sympathy of character development.
In short, the book is quite high on skill and education, and low on entertainment.
Overall: 6; Plot: 3.5; Characters: 6.5; Style: 6.5; World-building: 6; Originality: 5.5;
Copyright date 1948, Random House (Modern Library), June 1998, Cloth, 614 pages
ISBN: 0-679-60305-0 Order from: Amazon.com