Although I had a big stack of books waiting to be read at
home, I grabbed yet another off my library’s recent paperback release shelf
because I had heard it was unique and well-written. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime
Walk by Ben Fountain didn’t disappoint; I
was blown away by the emotional power of this unusual novel and engrossed by
its rapid pace.
The entire novel covers just one single day in the life of
Billy Lynn, a 19-year old serving in the Army in Iraq. The men of Bravo squad,
including Billy, have become overnight heroes in the U.S. after a fierce battle
of theirs was captured on video that quickly went viral. Yanked from their post
in Iraq, without any time to come to grips with what happened or mourn their
fallen comrade, the eight remaining, uninjured men of Bravo are on a whirlwind
Victory Tour across the U.S., ostensibly to honor their bravery though the real
purpose seems to be to drum up support for the continuing war.
On this particular day, Thanksgiving and the last day of
their U.S. tour, Bravo is being hosted by the Dallas Cowboys for an NFL game.
In 48 hours, they will be shipped back to Iraq and back to the insanity of the
war. Throughout the day, Billy texts with his sister who wants him to go AWOL,
listens to the continuous discussion of a possible movie of their experiences
where Hilary Swank would play him, stands next to Beyonce during the halftime
show, and even shares a moment of connection with a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader.
Most of the men, like Billy, are still teens or barely out of their teens, and
their heads are spinning with their sudden fame and the incongruency of being
treated like royalty one day and being sent back to their tents in the desert
among falling mortar the next.
In fact, this novel is all about incongruency and the
absurdity of their situation. As Billy muses about their fate during the long
wait for the game to begin, we learn the details of their famous battle and of
their past two surreal weeks touring the country. Countless people approach the
soldiers in Cowboy stadium to express their gratitude and support, as the men
struggle to make sense of it all. Billy’s scrambled thoughts at this
overwhelming input are sometimes aptly expressed simply as a jumble of words
swirling through his ears and mind. Somehow, in the space of this single day,
the author manages to cover everything from politics to war to family to
America’s obsession with football and celebrity.
That’s one of the surprises of this unique novel. It’s not
just about war or Iraq or terrorism. It’s about America and as much about the
civilians with whom the men interact as it is about the soldiers themselves.
It’s often tongue-in-cheek, frequently crude, sometimes hilariously funny, and
sometimes heart-breaking. The novel takes the reader through the same jumbled
mix of emotions that Billy himself is experiencing. Billy Lynn’s Long
Halftime Walk is a powerful emotional
journey, exploring issues both personal and universal, all in the space of a
single, surreal day.
This book absolutely blew me away. The way in which Fountain conveys the sheer absurdity of the modern war experience and the surreality of Bravo's situation in particular is sublime. I recommend this book to everyone who will listen.
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