The Things They Carried

I have to say I wasn't sure if I could count this as one of my fifteen, because I did a project on it for Content Lit. However, the reason I am posting anyways is because I have now finally read the whole thing as a novel. Previously, I've been assigned a short story from it in High School, and I've used parts of it for my own teacher education, but it was much better as a whole novel. I mean, it's a fabulous collection all the way around. It can be effectively broken into it's short stories and used that way, or it can be assigned as a book. I have said before that I am NOT AT ALL a history person. However, this book (collection of short stories) blends an account of the Vietname War with a strong literary presence and therefore appeals to me as a writer. The prose was beautiful and it attracted me instantly to a subject that would have otherwise gone right over my head.

I know this book is used a lot now in schools and I can see why. As I've said above, it has a high appeal for more students than just those who are into history. I would absolutely use this book in my classroom. I feel comfortable teaching it even though its historical and I really believe in its value for students. The themes, the plot, the literary elements, they all provide so much material for teaching and learning. I have read do many books this semester that I'd feel uncomfortable teaching, but this is inspiring to me that some novels are just built for the classroom and give me so many ideas for lessons, assignments, and discussions. I've said that I want to read more about the kinds of students I want to teach, but I also need to be reading more literature like this, that inspires my teaching self and gives me hope that I can find current novels that are just as important to teach as canonical texts.

I am so fascinated by O'Brien's ability to write to beautifully that I have ordered a few other of his books. I am just really excited to have found another author to add to my list.