War leaves marks on the body, but its heaviest burdens live in the mind.
In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien blurs the boundaries between memory and imagination as he follows the men of Alpha Company through the Vietnam War. From Jimmy Cross’s longing to Kiowa’s quiet strength, each soldier carries objects, fears, and stories that reveal who they were before the conflict and who they become within it.
As O’Brien reflects on survival, guilt, and the struggle to tell the truth, he exposes how narrative becomes a lifeline for those who return and those who cannot.
A modern classic and award-winning landmark of American literature, The Things They Carried explores the weight of war and the redemptive power of storytelling.
