Books › Going after Cacciato
Going after Cacciato
First published 1991 · 409 pages
A hallucinatory, desperate march away from the horrors of war and into the boundless, fragile refuge of the human imagination.
What it feels like
Reading this novel feels like slipping into a vivid, feverish dream where the boundaries between brutal reality and desperate fantasy dissolve entirely. The narrative meanders through the psychological landscape of a soldier pushed to the brink, contrasting the visceral, mud-soaked terror of the Vietnam War with an absurd, whimsical journey toward peace. The prose is both gritty and soaringly lyrical, pulling you into a disorienting but deeply moving exploration of fear, courage, and the mind's capacity for survival. It is a haunting, atmospheric experience that lingers long after the final page. This is a perfect match for readers who love literary fiction that bends reality to capture the profound emotional truths of trauma and the human spirit.
- Mood
- hallucinatory
- haunting
- disorienting
- dreamlike
- Tone
- surreal
- philosophical
- melancholic
- gritty
- Pace
- meandering
- Themes
- absurdity of war · power of imagination · escapism and trauma · fear versus courage
- The writing
- Lyrical and rhythmic, seamlessly weaving the visceral grit of combat with soaring, surreal flights of imagination.
- The arc
- Begins in the suffocating dread of combat and spirals into a desperate, hopeful fantasy before returning to a poignant, inescapable reality.
- Who it's for
- Readers who appreciate literary fiction that uses magical realism and psychological depth to explore the trauma and absurdity of conflict.
Content notes
- war violence
- death and grief
- trauma and PTSD
- profanity
About the book
In a blend of reality and fantasy, this novel tells the story of a young soldier who one day lays down his rifle and sets off on a quixotic journey from the jungles of Indochina to the streets of Paris. In its memorable evocation of men both fleeing from and meeting the demands of battle, Going After Cacciato stands as much more than just a great war novel. Ultimately it's about the forces of fear and heroism that do battle in the hearts of us all.
Description from Open Library.
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