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1968
In 1968, a nation fought two wars: one abroad...and one with itself. On one front, Spider walked point and tried to survive an insanity he neither accepted nor understood. On another, his "girl," Beverly, drifted into a strange counterculture that offered her dangerous freedoms at the price of her innocence. In 1968, a great black leader was murdered on a balcony in Memphis...a political convention in Chicago was stained with young blood...and Spider and Beverly searched for their separate peace in two worlds on fire. It was the year that changed us all. In 1968, everything went crazy.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 20, 1994
79 people are currently reading
447 people want to read
About the author
Joe Haldeman
444 books2,211 followersBrother of Jack C. Haldeman II
Haldeman is the author of 20 novels and five collections. The Forever War won the Nebula, Hugo and Ditmar Awards for best science fiction novel in 1975. Other notable titles include Camouflage, The Accidental Time Machine and Marsbound as well as the short works "Graves," "Tricentennial" and "The Hemingway Hoax." Starbound is scheduled for a January release. SFWA president Russell Davis called Haldeman "an extraordinarily talented writer, a respected teacher and mentor in our community, and a good friend."
Haldeman officially received the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master for 2010 by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America at the Nebula Awards Weekend in May, 2010 in Hollywood, Fla.
Haldeman is the author of 20 novels and five collections. The Forever War won the Nebula, Hugo and Ditmar Awards for best science fiction novel in 1975. Other notable titles include Camouflage, The Accidental Time Machine and Marsbound as well as the short works "Graves," "Tricentennial" and "The Hemingway Hoax." Starbound is scheduled for a January release. SFWA president Russell Davis called Haldeman "an extraordinarily talented writer, a respected teacher and mentor in our community, and a good friend."
Haldeman officially received the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master for 2010 by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America at the Nebula Awards Weekend in May, 2010 in Hollywood, Fla.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
December 30, 2020
2020 reread, and as good as I recalled. The war stuff is not for the faint of heart. It's based on Haldeman's own experience in Vietnam, where he served as an Army combat engineer and was badly wounded. Which parallels his fictional soldier-protagonist, who is also a big SF fan. As you would expect, it's a very well-written account of a tumultuous time. With graphic scenes of violent combat, just so you know in advance. The sort of things that most old soldiers avoid talking about, I think. Recommended, with that caveat. Historical fiction at this point, 50-some years on.
Haldeman wrote another Vietnam novel as his first book, War Year, published in 1972. I just added it to my TBR list, though not for anytime soon. It would be interesting to compare the two books -- and I will someday. That one is long-novella size: 128 pages.
Haldeman wrote another Vietnam novel as his first book, War Year, published in 1972. I just added it to my TBR list, though not for anytime soon. It would be interesting to compare the two books -- and I will someday. That one is long-novella size: 128 pages.
March 14, 2021
1968 is one of Haldeman's two non-science fiction novels, and is a very visceral, graphic, and intense account of the lives of two people in the titular year. It's the story of Spider, a Viet Nam veteran, and his girl friend Beverly, and Haldeman obviously poured a lot of himself into the book. I believe it was hoped that it would be a "break-out" book for him, but the publisher did little to publicize it... they didn't even put an illustration on the cover. Though is now qualifies as historical fiction, Haldeman examined many of the problems that returning soldiers faced before it became such a hot topic in the media. It's actually harsh and unpleasant to read in sections due to the brutality of the subject, but following the experiences of the two characters against the background of famous events is captivating. It's one of his best.
August 15, 2017
This is real
I was there. I was an infantryman. It's all here: the boredom, the petty bullshit, the fear lurking in the back of your mind every minute of every day, and of course the terror when things got sketchy. I was lucky in that I never had to live through anything as horrific as the events described in this book, but they seem very real to me. Very good book but not for the faint of heart.
I was there. I was an infantryman. It's all here: the boredom, the petty bullshit, the fear lurking in the back of your mind every minute of every day, and of course the terror when things got sketchy. I was lucky in that I never had to live through anything as horrific as the events described in this book, but they seem very real to me. Very good book but not for the faint of heart.
October 7, 2007
Had to read this for an English class in college and liked it so much, I kept it. A realistic fictional novel about the Vietnam War and America at this time. Beautiful imagery... Joe Haldeman puts you there and you feel what the characters (and the nation at that time) are feeling.
September 27, 2017
Wow, this book was everything I hoped it would be and more. Although it deals with some seriously heavy and disturbing subjects there are several laugh out loud moments.; most notably when Spider loses his virginity in a Vietnamese whorehouse.
This isn't just another nam novel though as it focuses equally on the shifting cultural plates in the states at the time.
Haldemans writing is brilliant throughout with short punchy chapters making the grim subjects easily digestible. Along with The Force and Prince of Thieves this is another recent 5 star read for me.
This isn't just another nam novel though as it focuses equally on the shifting cultural plates in the states at the time.
Haldemans writing is brilliant throughout with short punchy chapters making the grim subjects easily digestible. Along with The Force and Prince of Thieves this is another recent 5 star read for me.
January 23, 2013
This is a really great novel about that incredible year. Brought it all back for me. An unjustly overlooked classic, as far as I'm concerned.
June 1, 2025
First off, I wanted to say that I really wanted to give this book five stars. Much of it, mainly Spider’s story, deserves it. But there was one reason I couldn’t, and I’ll get there.
This was a completely random used book store buy—the subject matter interested me, and the glowing review from the Great And Powerful Peter Straub on the cover sold it to me. It sat around on the shelf for a few months and I picked it up as a random read. I’m glad I did too, because this book has much to offer.
1968, the year America vaporized (and then put itself back together again) is a year that has been written about a lot. In fact, I read a non fiction book years ago with the same title. In many ways it was sort of a culmination of all the tension and craziness that had been building and building. It was a turning point in public perception of the Vietnam War (which this book addresses)—young boomers picked up protest signs and rebelled against the war, their parents generation, equal rights, and the general status quo in record numbers. The DNC in Chicago went down. A number of promising politicians and activists were assassinated. The young people in the US were on the verge of monstrous cultural revolution—a psychedelic wind of change had swept the nation, and the Pentagon itself was to be lifted in to the air with the power of pure consciousness. As the revolutionary energy built and built….
Richard M. Nixon was elected President of the United States! 🎉 🎉 🥳 🥳 🎇
Yeah. Anyways. This book is mainly about two characters and their journeys through 1968. John Speidel (Spider) and his girlfriend, Beverly. Spider is shipped off to Vietnam to keep the world safe from communism and Beverly gets pulled into the dirty, dope-smoking, free-loving, nightmarishly optimistic world of hippies and 1968 style radical left-wing politics. This book is kind of two things—a Vietnam story (the majority of the book is about Vietnam and the effects of war on young minds), and young Beverly’s journey through the mind-expanding and radical side of the 60s. However, much more attention is given to Spider and his storyline.
By 1968, the time when hippie-dom was peaking in most of the country, many of the founders and purveyors of their psychedelic culture were already moving on and considered the movement dead. The once trippy, free-spirited streets of Haight Ashbury in San Francisco were beginning to be overrun with “bad” drugs like speed and heroin. Runaways began flocking to this land of Oz, only to find themselves homeless and broke. There was a very dark side to the peace and love movement, and this book does touch on it. Spider finds himself out of action and in an Army hospital dealing with PTSD—something that has affected soldiers as long as there have been wars, but perhaps never really got the attention it deserved until Vietnam. This has something that has touched my family, and I can’t even say how much I appreciated Haldeman’s attention to the issue.
This is a dark book. I expected it to a degree, but….not to this degree. It is sad and ruthless at times, and Haldeman isn’t afraid to show us the unfairness of life. The book itself is written in a third person narrative, with short chapters and little non-fiction tidbits worked right into the short chapter format. It actually worked very well, and Haldeman provides enough context to give you perspective on what’s going on, but not too much where it starts to feel like a non fiction book. It moves fast and remains easy to read and entertaining throughout.
My complaint is this—the first half to two thirds of the novel takes place in just the first few months of 1968. The book takes place in only 1968 and is decided into sections—first weeks, then months. By the time we get to only about forty pages left in the book, we finally hit the Summer of 1968. Haldeman broad-brushes the huge happening of that summer in a section that is only about five or six pages, and then we move into FALL to finish out the year, and the book. SO much loving attention was given to these stories for the vast majority of the book, and I do feel that it runs out of steam when it should be climaxing. We get a—sort of—wrap up on our characters, but for a book that started out incredibly personal and in-depth, it unfortunately finishes out exactly the opposite. The book should’ve probably been nearly twice as long had Haldeman given the same treatment to June-December of 1968 that he did to January-May. It was just…odd. The majority of this novel I give five stars, but I have to take a star off for the hasty treatment of events we got in the last 50 pages or so. The ending wasn’t bad, but it was lacking the detail and personal touch we got in the rest of the book.
However, I would recommend this to anyone interested in the events of 1968–especially the Vietnam/PTSD storyline. The book offers up so many details about daily life in Vietnam, that it was just as engaging as various Vietnam memoirs I have read over the years. Haldeman did his research, and he handled it with respect. Solid 4/5
This was a completely random used book store buy—the subject matter interested me, and the glowing review from the Great And Powerful Peter Straub on the cover sold it to me. It sat around on the shelf for a few months and I picked it up as a random read. I’m glad I did too, because this book has much to offer.
1968, the year America vaporized (and then put itself back together again) is a year that has been written about a lot. In fact, I read a non fiction book years ago with the same title. In many ways it was sort of a culmination of all the tension and craziness that had been building and building. It was a turning point in public perception of the Vietnam War (which this book addresses)—young boomers picked up protest signs and rebelled against the war, their parents generation, equal rights, and the general status quo in record numbers. The DNC in Chicago went down. A number of promising politicians and activists were assassinated. The young people in the US were on the verge of monstrous cultural revolution—a psychedelic wind of change had swept the nation, and the Pentagon itself was to be lifted in to the air with the power of pure consciousness. As the revolutionary energy built and built….
Richard M. Nixon was elected President of the United States! 🎉 🎉 🥳 🥳 🎇
Yeah. Anyways. This book is mainly about two characters and their journeys through 1968. John Speidel (Spider) and his girlfriend, Beverly. Spider is shipped off to Vietnam to keep the world safe from communism and Beverly gets pulled into the dirty, dope-smoking, free-loving, nightmarishly optimistic world of hippies and 1968 style radical left-wing politics. This book is kind of two things—a Vietnam story (the majority of the book is about Vietnam and the effects of war on young minds), and young Beverly’s journey through the mind-expanding and radical side of the 60s. However, much more attention is given to Spider and his storyline.
By 1968, the time when hippie-dom was peaking in most of the country, many of the founders and purveyors of their psychedelic culture were already moving on and considered the movement dead. The once trippy, free-spirited streets of Haight Ashbury in San Francisco were beginning to be overrun with “bad” drugs like speed and heroin. Runaways began flocking to this land of Oz, only to find themselves homeless and broke. There was a very dark side to the peace and love movement, and this book does touch on it. Spider finds himself out of action and in an Army hospital dealing with PTSD—something that has affected soldiers as long as there have been wars, but perhaps never really got the attention it deserved until Vietnam. This has something that has touched my family, and I can’t even say how much I appreciated Haldeman’s attention to the issue.
This is a dark book. I expected it to a degree, but….not to this degree. It is sad and ruthless at times, and Haldeman isn’t afraid to show us the unfairness of life. The book itself is written in a third person narrative, with short chapters and little non-fiction tidbits worked right into the short chapter format. It actually worked very well, and Haldeman provides enough context to give you perspective on what’s going on, but not too much where it starts to feel like a non fiction book. It moves fast and remains easy to read and entertaining throughout.
My complaint is this—the first half to two thirds of the novel takes place in just the first few months of 1968. The book takes place in only 1968 and is decided into sections—first weeks, then months. By the time we get to only about forty pages left in the book, we finally hit the Summer of 1968. Haldeman broad-brushes the huge happening of that summer in a section that is only about five or six pages, and then we move into FALL to finish out the year, and the book. SO much loving attention was given to these stories for the vast majority of the book, and I do feel that it runs out of steam when it should be climaxing. We get a—sort of—wrap up on our characters, but for a book that started out incredibly personal and in-depth, it unfortunately finishes out exactly the opposite. The book should’ve probably been nearly twice as long had Haldeman given the same treatment to June-December of 1968 that he did to January-May. It was just…odd. The majority of this novel I give five stars, but I have to take a star off for the hasty treatment of events we got in the last 50 pages or so. The ending wasn’t bad, but it was lacking the detail and personal touch we got in the rest of the book.
However, I would recommend this to anyone interested in the events of 1968–especially the Vietnam/PTSD storyline. The book offers up so many details about daily life in Vietnam, that it was just as engaging as various Vietnam memoirs I have read over the years. Haldeman did his research, and he handled it with respect. Solid 4/5
January 28, 2020
Storyline: 2/5
Characters: 2/5
Writing Style: 2/5
Resonance: 2/5
I’m not sure how this got on my reading list, but it appears to have been accidental. I was expecting science fiction. This was not. That is my fault, not Haldeman’s, but it probably contributes to my low regard of the book. Expectations matter. It is also not the Vietnam War book that it appears to be when one first begins. In the afterward Haldeman writes that this book, in part, is for “men and women everywhere who are trapped day and night, locked away in the dark prison of their memories of war.” And the first several chapters read like a Vietnam War tale. Haldeman did not have enough material, unfortunately, to keep that narrative going. The title, then, is the more important indicator. The book really is about the year 1968. While a lot of the story is about Vietnam, there is a lot about domestic politics in America and the social changes at the time as well. It is a lashing-out book. Haldeman was drafted in the Vietnam War, and a lot of his books seem to be heavily influenced by the experiences. In 1968 Haldeman brandishes cynicism. Cynicism against the establishment. The establishment with regards to the Vietnam War were the politicians, generals, and profiting companies that put the draftees into service. But there are plenty more establishment figures and cultures to berate once Haldeman turns more stateside. If this was something he needed to write as some sort of cathartic release, I am certainly not going to begrudge him. And readers who went through similar experiences might find a sense of camaraderie in having someone else express their cynicism. As a reader not having any personal experience in the war and not particularly interested in Joe Haldeman, someone instead looking for insights, entertainment, and creativity, I found the whole thing lacking in the gravity and tone that was needed to make this affecting or memorable. There was a snide flippancy that buoyed the cynicism but detracted from this as serious historical fiction. The rapidly-changing subheadings, replacing standard chapters, were amusing for the first few occurrences. Thereafter they were dutifully discharged for the purpose of stylistic devotion, not because they were useful. Similarly, the forays into civil rights and homophobia were dutifully included. They read as if researched more than experienced and were even less arresting than the Vietnam story.
I could see how this would have been insightful and creative in 1969. By the time this was published in 1994, it is difficult to believe that there aren’t more insightful memoirs and creative fictions.
Characters: 2/5
Writing Style: 2/5
Resonance: 2/5
I’m not sure how this got on my reading list, but it appears to have been accidental. I was expecting science fiction. This was not. That is my fault, not Haldeman’s, but it probably contributes to my low regard of the book. Expectations matter. It is also not the Vietnam War book that it appears to be when one first begins. In the afterward Haldeman writes that this book, in part, is for “men and women everywhere who are trapped day and night, locked away in the dark prison of their memories of war.” And the first several chapters read like a Vietnam War tale. Haldeman did not have enough material, unfortunately, to keep that narrative going. The title, then, is the more important indicator. The book really is about the year 1968. While a lot of the story is about Vietnam, there is a lot about domestic politics in America and the social changes at the time as well. It is a lashing-out book. Haldeman was drafted in the Vietnam War, and a lot of his books seem to be heavily influenced by the experiences. In 1968 Haldeman brandishes cynicism. Cynicism against the establishment. The establishment with regards to the Vietnam War were the politicians, generals, and profiting companies that put the draftees into service. But there are plenty more establishment figures and cultures to berate once Haldeman turns more stateside. If this was something he needed to write as some sort of cathartic release, I am certainly not going to begrudge him. And readers who went through similar experiences might find a sense of camaraderie in having someone else express their cynicism. As a reader not having any personal experience in the war and not particularly interested in Joe Haldeman, someone instead looking for insights, entertainment, and creativity, I found the whole thing lacking in the gravity and tone that was needed to make this affecting or memorable. There was a snide flippancy that buoyed the cynicism but detracted from this as serious historical fiction. The rapidly-changing subheadings, replacing standard chapters, were amusing for the first few occurrences. Thereafter they were dutifully discharged for the purpose of stylistic devotion, not because they were useful. Similarly, the forays into civil rights and homophobia were dutifully included. They read as if researched more than experienced and were even less arresting than the Vietnam story.
I could see how this would have been insightful and creative in 1969. By the time this was published in 1994, it is difficult to believe that there aren’t more insightful memoirs and creative fictions.
October 23, 2017
P. 248
"The double Standard was absolute and unquestioned. Boys cajoled and pleaded and promised, but if a girl finally did give in, they would in all probability have sex with her for a month or two and then wander off looking for fresh blood, or meat, meanwhile telling all the other guys about how easy she was. She was a slit but he was normal, he was a man."
Thanks, Joe Haldeman, for reminding me how much and why I hate men.
But the book: In 1968 I was a sophomore at Coronado High School in Scottsdale, AZ. We had a demonstration in the park across from the school, wearing black armbands and having a day off school if our parents signed a note for us. We were protesting the Vietnam war, but we didn't have any idea at all about it.
My own brother got a 4F deflection from the draft lottery, taking LSD to be deemed mentally incompetent, to get out of his evaluation in New Mexico. I don't know why the draftees were not accorded the recognition and respect that servicemen get now, but they didn't. People actually spit on them!
This story is about just one of those GIs, Who suffered brutally in the short time that he served in that cruel and senseless war, and is based on the time that Haldeman spent in Vietnam--1968.
"The double Standard was absolute and unquestioned. Boys cajoled and pleaded and promised, but if a girl finally did give in, they would in all probability have sex with her for a month or two and then wander off looking for fresh blood, or meat, meanwhile telling all the other guys about how easy she was. She was a slit but he was normal, he was a man."
Thanks, Joe Haldeman, for reminding me how much and why I hate men.
But the book: In 1968 I was a sophomore at Coronado High School in Scottsdale, AZ. We had a demonstration in the park across from the school, wearing black armbands and having a day off school if our parents signed a note for us. We were protesting the Vietnam war, but we didn't have any idea at all about it.
My own brother got a 4F deflection from the draft lottery, taking LSD to be deemed mentally incompetent, to get out of his evaluation in New Mexico. I don't know why the draftees were not accorded the recognition and respect that servicemen get now, but they didn't. People actually spit on them!
This story is about just one of those GIs, Who suffered brutally in the short time that he served in that cruel and senseless war, and is based on the time that Haldeman spent in Vietnam--1968.
August 28, 2025
Something different for me
On the basis of the description of this book, I would never have purchased it if it hadn't been written by Mr. Haldeman, whose s-f work I've enjoyed for a half-century. And I'd have missed a neck of a book. I've known for a long time that the author was a Vietnam vet. So I'm sure that most of this novel stems from first-hand experience. I'm just a bit too young to have experienced Vietnam, but old enough to remember the war on the home front and the 'war to end the war.'
The picture this work paints of the era is clear and uncompromising. It's often not pretty, but it is real. The main character, Spider, is 100% believable, but not like any character you've ever met before.
I'm very glad I found this novel. Highly recommended.
On the basis of the description of this book, I would never have purchased it if it hadn't been written by Mr. Haldeman, whose s-f work I've enjoyed for a half-century. And I'd have missed a neck of a book. I've known for a long time that the author was a Vietnam vet. So I'm sure that most of this novel stems from first-hand experience. I'm just a bit too young to have experienced Vietnam, but old enough to remember the war on the home front and the 'war to end the war.'
The picture this work paints of the era is clear and uncompromising. It's often not pretty, but it is real. The main character, Spider, is 100% believable, but not like any character you've ever met before.
I'm very glad I found this novel. Highly recommended.
September 16, 2020
A engaging account of a soldier's deployment in Vietnam and his subsequent return to civilian life while suffering from PTSD.
August 4, 2018
Heart breaking to realize how many thousands of Vietnam veterans suffered from misdiagnosed PTSD and how different their lives could have been if they received better treatment...
then and now. Very good book well written documenting a revolutionary year of American history and culture. A must read for a journey into melancholy.
then and now. Very good book well written documenting a revolutionary year of American history and culture. A must read for a journey into melancholy.
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July 7, 2021Not that different than War Year (read it too if you like Haldeman). I take much of both books as suggestions of the lunacy of war and the serious business of fighting in them. Oddly, as often noted Joe Haldeman is the closest thing we have to Robert Heinlein, which makes him a treasure, but as a stand alone he has a much more focused existence, not unrelated to others, such as Chris Bunch and Alan Cole, who actually came from the same Viet Nam dominated era, and who wrote science fiction as well as semi-personal war stories. There may be some broad national or international lessons to be found in the Haldeman's 'Nam books, but in the end the war written about was personal, as is the lesson.
November 12, 2018
To say the main character of this book has a run of bad luck is an understatement. He starts his tour in Vietname in 1968 in Graves Registration which is exactly what the name implies: identifying and cataloging the dead. After an argument with his commanding officer, he's sent out as a radio technician ... and lands in Walter Reed a few weeks later. Things just go downhill from there.
The author managed to weave a lot about other events of 1968 history seamlessly--or fairly seamlessly--into the narrative. It adds another valuable perspective to a time period we would do well not to forget or gloss over.
The author managed to weave a lot about other events of 1968 history seamlessly--or fairly seamlessly--into the narrative. It adds another valuable perspective to a time period we would do well not to forget or gloss over.
June 10, 2018
Wow. Just wow.
I read this in one sitting. It's heartbreaking, yet fascinating. There is hard core sex, as well as hard core gore. But most of all, there is hard core truth. This is an honest reflection of a period in history. The year 1968. What a tumultuous year. As sad as it is, it happened. There's no escaping that fact. I was only 10 in 1968 but I remember "make love, not war"; peace signs everywhere; hippies; and Vietnam. I lost a cousin in Vietnam. I found this book to be quite educational. And quite sad.
I read this in one sitting. It's heartbreaking, yet fascinating. There is hard core sex, as well as hard core gore. But most of all, there is hard core truth. This is an honest reflection of a period in history. The year 1968. What a tumultuous year. As sad as it is, it happened. There's no escaping that fact. I was only 10 in 1968 but I remember "make love, not war"; peace signs everywhere; hippies; and Vietnam. I lost a cousin in Vietnam. I found this book to be quite educational. And quite sad.
January 28, 2018
A powerful and moving story of the Vietnam War and its effect on Spider, a drafted GI, and Beverley, the girl he left behind to try to wait for him, set against a backdrop of domestic politics and factual sidelights on the nature of the war and the mental illness of the lead character. It’s brutally honest with a realistic cast, an unexpected but convincing final chapter and an indictment of both the army (particularly its psychiatric practices) and contemporary society.
January 24, 2023
Although Haldeman is best known for science fiction this is, I think, his second greatest book. It’s real. It’s a live view of a Vietnam infantryman that is not glorified and infused with false narrative.
This book, like The Forever War, explores PTSD and returning home to a changed culture after military service and it does a phenomenal job!
Like other reviewers have said though, it’s not for the faint of heart. There are some graphic sequences that take place fairly early in the book.
This book, like The Forever War, explores PTSD and returning home to a changed culture after military service and it does a phenomenal job!
Like other reviewers have said though, it’s not for the faint of heart. There are some graphic sequences that take place fairly early in the book.
October 30, 2019
A pleasant mixture
This is a uniquely written book combining fiction and nonfiction. I found the juxtaposition of the two enjoyable. The characters are interesting and I like the way he involved his characters in various parts of the events of 1968. The departure of the authors usual genre of science fiction but a pleasant departure.
This is a uniquely written book combining fiction and nonfiction. I found the juxtaposition of the two enjoyable. The characters are interesting and I like the way he involved his characters in various parts of the events of 1968. The departure of the authors usual genre of science fiction but a pleasant departure.
May 21, 2018
Loved this book. This is a great story about war and it's aftermath with mini history lessons sprinkled throughout. This is my first time reading this author but not the last. This is a powerful piece of work.
April 11, 2021
3.5 stars
This book is unlike his others. It isn't science fiction.
It is tough to read. Not because of the writing. But it is about 1968 and the many terrible things of that time. Worth reading though.
This book is unlike his others. It isn't science fiction.
It is tough to read. Not because of the writing. But it is about 1968 and the many terrible things of that time. Worth reading though.
October 22, 2021
This in one of my absolute favorite books ever. I think I read it twice years ago and although I'm not a big Sci-fi person I loved this book and cherish my paper back copy. I highly recommend Joe Haldeman to everyone regardless of favorite genre.
January 10, 2022
I was 21 in 1968. Haldeman gives a good rendition of what it was like. The folk who stayed home and the folk who fought are fairly depicted in my opinion. Vets are still ending up in shantytowns. That is a sad truth even though 'Spider' is making the best of it.
May 29, 2018
Sometimes a little hard to read from an emotional standpoint but I really liked this book. Took me right back to my 20s .
February 27, 2021
Hard to put down
A realistic picture of a soldier’s time in Vietnam. More importantly, a vivid description of PTSD and the treatment or lack of
A realistic picture of a soldier’s time in Vietnam. More importantly, a vivid description of PTSD and the treatment or lack of
December 27, 2025
A good read.
I thought that this was one of Joe's better books, most of which are very good.
A good human interest story and informative history.
I thought that this was one of Joe's better books, most of which are very good.
A good human interest story and informative history.
November 18, 2022
This was certainly one of the more depressing books I read this yet, but I still found it to be a worthwhile journey. I wasn't alive in 1968 so appreciated getting to read a story that gave some first hand stories of what it may haven bee like to live through such a tumultuous year. The two main characters both ultimately were quite compelling. Spider's story is sad, as the book basically tells you it will be from the start with tons of dark foreshadowing. I enjoyed that Spider was a fan of sci fi so you get nuggets of sci fi throughout the story, plus a few parts that are probably better described as horror.
I also liked that the author made sure to include lots of context around the stories - explaining specifics of the war, US politics, and even psychiatric treatment and care available at the time.
I recommend this book to others but have to tell them it was pretty devastating at times, and it manages to go from bad to worse more than once. So... not for everyone. But an interesting read.
I also liked that the author made sure to include lots of context around the stories - explaining specifics of the war, US politics, and even psychiatric treatment and care available at the time.
I recommend this book to others but have to tell them it was pretty devastating at times, and it manages to go from bad to worse more than once. So... not for everyone. But an interesting read.
September 9, 2017
What the Vietnam war did to Americans. If you are too young to remember, or think subsequent or previous wars were the same, you should read this. If you didn't ecperience the "60's" you should read this. If you were there and forgot, you should read this. If you were in Vietnam there may not be any reason to read this.
September 11, 2010
This wasn't a horrible book, but I found myself avoiding continuing on it so decided it must not be what I am in the mood for right now. I found it to be a bit too much like reading various Wikipedia entries related to the Vietnam conflict with little to no character development. The people seemed like they were thrown in to try to make a story around all of the dry details about the conflict, but more as an afterthought.
August 24, 2016
What starts out as being about the Vietnam war becomes about something much more interesting, becoming a sort of state of the nation novel for that year. I'm not sure why I didn't like it more.
Fuller review on my blog here for the interested.
Fuller review on my blog here for the interested.
January 7, 2009
A guttural, surprisingly touching Vietnam memoir. In continues Haldeman's theme of "what happens when academics are sent off to war." Himself being a veteran of Vietnam, the book is well done. It's graphic, sincere, and occasionally quite horrifying, if only because so much of it is real.
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