War is not all fighting, It can also include internal conflict and emotional stuff that soldiers have to deal with constantly. In the book, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien, The author illustrates  how things people carry aren’t always physical, rather they can be mental and emotional too and sometimes the weight of those emotions outweigh the rifles and the ammunition that soliders carry.

The novel is a historical fiction novel that follows a group of U.S. soldiers in Vietnam, linking together short stories that focus on their emotional and physical burdens. Instead of the book being one singular story, The story branches off into a bunch of connected stories that focus on different characters and their experience during and after the war.

Characters like Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, Kiowa, Norman Bowker, and Rat Kiley each cope with trauma in different ways, revealing how war affects everyone differently. O’Brien is the author and the protagonist highlights the intense pressure of leadership, the shock of violence, and the long-term struggles that soldiers carry home.

One of the book’s strengths is how clearly O’Brien contrasts what soldiers must carry everything from knives and rations to the weight of losing a friend. The author’s writing style is one where he slowly builds up the suspense, while examining the terrible effects of war and even beyond the actual war. O’Brien show depth in his characters by presenting their personal struggles along with the theme of war. The timeline of the story is sometimes, presented out of order, which makes the book feel more realistic and gives the reader a sympathetic view of the events unfolding.

Overall, This book is currently the best book ever in my opinion! The book The Things They Carried covers both war and memories in which it is best to learn, so that we don’t repeat history. 

I think if a person likes war based, this book is ideal. This book is currently my favorite book ever and I’m not a big book person. However, this book definitely made a huge impact on me. In my opinion, this book was by far the best book that I have ever read therefore I rate it a solid 4.5/5. 

So if a person likes about war this would be a great choice. A word of caution this book does contain some gruesome scenes about the Vietnam War, so I recommend this novel to high school students and above only. Whoever reads this book next, I hope you enjoy this book just as much as I did.