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Joe Haldeman
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War Year Kindle Edition

by Joe Haldeman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 113 ratings
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A tour of duty through the worst that the world has to offer

Before his time as a professor of writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, before penning multiple Nebula and Hugo Award–winning novels and stories, Joe Haldeman was a soldier in Vietnam, an experience that changed him and colored much of what he has written. War Year is Haldeman’s first novel and his first attempt to describe what he saw in Vietnam and give insight into what happened for the benefit of those who weren’t there.
 
The minimalist War Year follows the life of John Farmer, a combat engineer, over the course of a year in Vietnam. John undergoes training, and then, along with his fellow soldiers, does whatever it takes to survive in unforgiving conditions.
 
Powerful and affecting, War Year reaches its highest peaks as it describes with enduring truth the sights and experiences of what it was like to be in the humid jungles of Vietnam in 1968.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Joe Haldeman including rare images from the author’s personal collection. 
 
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  1. Print length
    142 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Open Road Media
  5. Publication date
    December 2, 2014
  6. File size
    3565 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Haldeman is much more than just a military SF writer, but it’s clear that Vietnam remains central to his existence and the nightmare inspiration for some of his best work . . . Far from escapist, Haldeman’s art provides a devastating retrospective of a particularly black time in American history.” —Publishers Weekly

"A powerfully direct narrative thrust . . . Hemingway looks like Mr. Haldeman’s most obvious model. . . . The novel carries absolute conviction in its own terms; Mr. Haldeman catches the way serving soldiers talk and move and respond to each other with a fidelity that is harsh but never inhumane.” —Commonweal

“[One of the] outstanding books of the year.” —The New York Times Book Review

“If you want to know what happens to a nice American boy in Vietnam, this is it.” —Santa Fe New Mexican

About the Author

“Haldeman is much more than just a military SF writer, but it’s clear that Vietnam remains central to his existence and the nightmare inspiration for some of his best work . . . Far from escapist, Haldeman’s art provides a devastating retrospective of a particularly black time in American history.” —Publishers Weekly

"A powerfully direct narrative thrust . . . Hemingway looks like Mr. Haldeman’s most obvious model. . . . The novel carries absolute conviction in its own terms; Mr. Haldeman catches the way serving soldiers talk and move and respond to each other with a fidelity that is harsh but never inhumane.” —Commonweal

“[One of the] outstanding books of the year.” —The New York Times Book Review

“If you want to know what happens to a nice American boy in Vietnam, this is it.” —Santa Fe New Mexican

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00PI18486
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (December 2, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 2, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3565 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 142 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 113 ratings

About the author

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Joe Haldeman

Joe Haldeman

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Joe Haldeman began his writing career while he was still in the army. Drafted in 1967, he fought in the Central Highlands of Vietnam as a combat engineer with the Fourth Division. He was awarded several medals, including a Purple Heart. Haldeman sold his first story in 1969 and has since written over two dozen novels and five collections of short stories and poetry. He has won the Nebula and Hugo Awards for his novels, novellas, poems, and short stories, as well as the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, the Locus Award, the Rhysling Award, the World Fantasy Award, and the James Tiptree, Jr. Award. His works include The Forever War, Forever Peace, Camouflage, 1968, the Worlds saga, and the Marsbound series. Haldeman recently retired after many years as an associate professor in the Department of Writing and Humanistic Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He and his wife, Gay, live in Florida, where he also paints, plays the guitar, rides his bicycle, and studies the skies with his telescope.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
113 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Michael Wenzler
5.0 out of 5 stars Truncated
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2022
Verified Purchase
Typically Haldeman. Short. Straight to the point. Realistic. Descriptions of the war aren't overblown or exaggerated. I really identified with the main character. My only criticism is that it ended abruptly - which could and was certainly possible, but I wanted to see the main character go through the full cycle of the war.
3 people found this helpful
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Jim
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Book
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2016
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Haldeman's SciFi books are incredible. This book is based on his year in Viet Nam. Any one who thinks they missed something by not going there during the war will have second thoughts after reading this.
2 people found this helpful
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ronhick
5.0 out of 5 stars So accurate in it's description
Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2018
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One of the best books about the Vietnam war I have read. Chaldean captures the fear, confusion, friendship and grudging acceptance combat creates. I am sure I will read this book many more times. Wish I had found it sooner.
One person found this helpful
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Jeff Donohue Sr.
5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing and Hard to Put Down
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2015
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As a Vietnam Veteran myself (02/1967 - 02/1968) and having served in the 1st Engineer Battalion of the 1st Infantry Division, I found his writing to be authentic and his descriptions of the land and situations to be accurate. Add to that his narrative skills and the result is a very readable novel that Vietnam Veterans and non-Veterans of any era will find engrossing and hard to put down.
9 people found this helpful
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Matko Vladanovic
3.0 out of 5 stars Simple and unremarkable
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2013
It's been awhile since I read anything that would resemble a war novel. I don't know, contemporary Croatian literature is crammed with these and I guess I'm not really looking for a similar prose in other countries. It's been more than awhile since I read anything that would resemble a war prose about Vietnam. I watched my share of movies, seen a documentary or few, but the closest thing to Vietnam-inspired prose was Samuel R. Delaney's "Dhalgren". For those of you who are familiar with that title - you know that it isn't a war novel and that it barely touches that topic. Times change and once a popular (or even relevant) topic became something like a battered old veteran - present and living, but easily ignored.

Anyhow, in last couple of months I've been reading through Haldeman's body of work and sooner or later this one was bound to come upon me (as it happens it came later, wonders of oversea delivery service). It took me awhile to adapt, to "get" into the seventies once again, to summon that particular place and time - this is essential (at least for me it is) for "proper" understanding of the literature. - to relax and to put my mind into this rather short novel. Two or three hours later I was back from the jungles of Vietnam, once more a regular person instead of a grunt.

"War Year" is simple enough, quick paced and told mainly in dialogue. Haldeman was just starting to get to know his way around language and storytelling which - shoved. There is no real ambition in this book (except for the "anti-war" closing chapter - the one from '78, I didn't want to read the '72 version with a different ending), nor real challenge for reader. Story is simple and straightforward, narrated in a series of episodes that cover one year in a life of an average grunt (from deployment through various stages of existence). Irrationality of it all comes to life in many a passage, quick friendships and even quicker deaths try to evoke a feeling of everyday combat for a reader that is sitting comfortably in his chair, being present and being lost at the same time proves to be a key factor - key element for capturing the essence of a 19yr old in an alien environment etc. Haldeman does this rather well, being his first book and all but somewhere within this frame we (or at least I) encounter a problem.

Remember that I told you that I didn't read a war prose for a long time? Well, that doesn't mean that I didn't read it at all. Looking back at Haldeman's seventies from where I stand now I can't but notice simplicity of it all or - to phrase it differently - how uneventful compared to other war novels that were around in that time (or even before) this one is. By the time "War Year" was published there were far more powerful books in American literature, there were far more powerful books in a European literature as well. Haldeman - being a Vietnam veteran - had firsthand experience about the war (combat engineering and wounds) which he managed to evoke on these pages to an extent but other authors, with similar experiences, managed to create something more than mere retelling of events with a simple ending point. Classics become classics for a reason, and "War Year" didn't become one for a reason. Now, "Forever war" is a different thing altogether. That one became and still is a classic but that one came later, when Haldeman found a way to actually do something with literature. Thing is though, everybody has to start somewhere and many a time that starting point isn't something of value. Important thing is evolution and Haldeman, throughout his career, did manage to evolve. This book stand as a reminder of baby steps and it should be viewed in that light. No great expectations, no hidden treasures of times past, no anything. Just a simple story that you'll probably forget in a no time.
4 people found this helpful
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Viking vet
4.0 out of 5 stars The author has made several contributions that are worthwhile reads ...
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2017
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The author has made several contributions that are worthwhile reads. This is another one of them.
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Lawrence Moore
5.0 out of 5 stars So believable it made me cry for lost friends.
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2016
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Rang of truth. Boredom and fear. Clearly told from the inside. Really liked the General - typical REMF. Ought to make them deliver the heart-breaking news. Should be read by every voter.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Brian Jeffrey
5.0 out of 5 stars A slice of military life during the Vietnam war.
Reviewed in Canada on January 3, 2024
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This isn't a hero laden book but more about what happened to the average guy. Seemed more like what most military people went through over there, some good and some bad.

A quick but thoroughly enjoyable read.
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NEIL-A
4.0 out of 5 stars Good book i got more into the character as the ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 23, 2016
Verified Purchase
Good book i got more into the character as the story went along,.The only problem was it was too short but it was joe's 1st novel i believe.
I bought this after reading the forever war,which i really enjoyed-i have to get the rest of the trilogy
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