Denis Johnson can write. Just choose anything he’s done. But if you really want to sink your teeth in pick up Tree of Smoke. As many of you know the photography of the Vietnam War was what made me become a journalist, so you can probably guess how many Vietnam books I’ve read over the years. Many. This book lands near the top of the list.
Now, I can’t go against Dispatches or The Things they Carried, or The Quiet American even River of Time about Cambodia, but in terms of a novel about Vietnam this is a masterpiece. I always judge books by how often they creep into my mind when I’m NOT reading. I would be out at night thinking of getting home to finish this 600+ page opus.
Get it, read it.
I’d give you a longer review but I’d probably screw it up. Just read it.
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I believe I’m going to just starting adding the books you read (well some of them, anyway) to my GoodReads To Be Read list so that I can remember them. It’s a long list as is, but it can always use more.
Oh, I’m doing a Graham Greene summer. I read Ministry of Fear recently and it reminded me how much I enjoy him. So, going to delve deeper into him this summer. Add The Quiet American to the list.
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Mark,
He’s a legend. Q American is awesome.