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Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes6/11/2023 ![]() That changes over the course of the book, as Mellas matures and encounters situations for which he's unprepared and to which he must rapidly adapt. He's therefore a bit older than the 16 - 20 year old "grunts" around him, but far less wise in the ways of war. ![]() As we meet Mellas, he is a callow young man who joined the Marines right out of high school, entering an officer candidate program that allowed him to attend college while training, joining the Marine Corps proper after graduation. The narrative follows Second Lieutenant Waino Mellas, newly arrived at Fire Support Base (FSB) Matterhorn in the northwest corner of South Vietnam. I've read many war novels over the years, but none that come close to this book's ability to convey the lives of soldiers with such realism. Marlantes's first novel is stunning in its intensity and scope. Matterhorn should come with a warning: "Do not read before bed." Not only did it keep me up reading into the wee hours of the night, but I couldn't stop thinking about the characters and situations they found themselves in long after I'd turned off the light. ![]() ![]() ![]() A fictional saga of men in combat, written over the course of thirty-five years by a highly decorated Vietnam veteran ![]()
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