George Tilson leaves his Iowa home for Normandy as an eighteen-year-old recruit in World War II. Shy and unassuming, he keeps to himself and earns the nickname “Heck” because he doesn’t swear. He is muscled from summers of farm labor, and knows how to work long and hard without complaint. But combat is far more brutal than he imagined and fear consumes him.

This novella packs a big punch. The writing is at once reserved and intimately emotional. The reader witnesses the horrors of war along with Heck, who frequently seems removed from the battles due to his cautious nature. But his fear, terror, and horror are intensely felt, as is his shame at his perceived cowardice. The combat scenes capture perfectly the chaos and confusion of a major battle. The scenes at base camp capture the boredom and uncertainty of “waiting to be called,” and give the reader (and the combatants) a much-needed respite.

When I finished I was not sure I agreed with Heck’s self-assessment that he is a coward. I recognize that he is frightened to inaction at times, but that seems reasonable to me given the circumstances he finds himself in. I asked my husband (a combat infantry platoon leader in Vietnam) about this. His response is that it’s normal to be scared, but you have to face it. I think there are times when Heck definitely faces his fears and conducts himself well. But there are other incidents when he takes “the coward’s way out,” and those tend to be when he is alone and without someone to witness his cowardice. Internally, however, he is always looking to escape.

And that is what gives the ending such impact. Without giving anything away, I don’t see how he can escape that final scenario … and I’m not so sure he even wants to.
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Nick Arvin's prose belies his involvement in the University of Iowa's writer's workshop, but the plot is less clich�� than the self-aware writing style. For me, that is; I don't read much war fiction. If the composition was careful, what he composed was remarkable. The protagonist's panic, horror, and ignorance in battle evoked a reaction similar to that of The Road. Not as universally horrifying, because (to someone who has never seen combat), World War II is a finite, self-contained, known quantity ��� unlike everything in the McCarthy.

This is for bookclub next week, and it's also the One City, One Book selection for Denver in 2008. It should be good for conversation.

George "Heck" Tilson turns eighteen years old just in time to do a full turn of duty in WWII. This short novel is not the story of a hero, or even a patriot. It's the story of putting one foot in front of the other when all your instincts are telling to stop and run away. I thought the ending was a bit contrived (Heck's life becomes entwined with Pvt. Eddie Slovak's life), but until then, it was a good read. ( )

Very difficult read.. Realistic descriptions of fighting, survival, courage .. Main character about18, from a farm in Midwest, totally naive ..any mother of sons would find this difficult. However every person that has any influence in sening young men to was should read this.. ( )

George "Heck" Tilson turns eighteen years old just in time to do a full turn of duty in WWII. This short novel is not the story of a hero, or even a patriot. It's the story of putting one foot in front of the other when all your instincts are telling to stop and run away. I thought the ending was a bit contrived (Heck's life becomes entwined with Pvt. Eddie Slovak's life), but until then, it was a good read. ( )