A Review of Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers

A Review of "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers

The book Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers does a satisfactory job portraying the life of a United States soldier in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The average age of an American soldier was 19 years old. These soldiers had to quickly learn and adapt to a war environment to survive the war mentally and physically. Many of the soldiers in the book had their own different ways to cope with the horrors they perceived during the war, so they wouldn't go insane.

Introduction to Richard Perry

The main character in the book, Richard Perry, has just graduated high school and decided to enlist in the army because, even with good grades, he could not afford to go to college while living with his alcoholic mother. When Perry landed in Vietnam, he was certainly not ready to witness what war had to offer. While fighting in Vietnam, Perry witnessed things that nobody would want to witness in their lifetimes, experiences that really make one think and question one's existence. He witnessed many disturbing scenes, including death, killing, and even friendly fire. As a soldier in the Vietnam War, Richard Perry needed to find a way to cope with what he had seen, what he had done, and the war in general. To 'escape' the war, Perry often thought about his family back home. He thought about his mom and his brother, who meant a lot to him, even though he didn't express his feelings towards his mother as much as his brother Kenny. He also reflected on his past experiences back at home and in the war. Another coping mechanism for Richie was thinking about his hometown of Harlem, New York. He pondered the things and people he had left behind and the possible scenarios of what might have happened if he hadn't enlisted in the army. Richie struggled to understand his observations and refused to shy away from the complicated issues they raised.

Character Study: Lobel

Another character named Lobel showed strong signs of trying to 'escape' the war by pretending it was all a big movie. Lobel viewed Vietnam as a giant film set and saw himself as the protagonist of a war movie. His fascination with movies was more than just a diversion; it was an escape from a reality that was too hard for him to face. He firmly held onto the idea that movies were 'the only true thing in life,' thereby enabling himself to disregard the horrific sights around him as unreal. Lobel's fascination with films helped him sort out the difficult moral dilemmas that faced Richie, believing that the world of films was far more realistic than the battlefield. For Lobel, it wasn't even worth questioning these challenging questions.

Character Study: Peewee

Harold Gates, or Peewee, also had his own unique way of dealing with being in the war. Throughout the book, Peewee used his humor and boldness to cope with the war and his fears. Peewee reacted with cocky comedy to confusion and fear, making jokes about any awkward suspicions. When Peewee was suddenly overwhelmed by the Vietnamese child who became a sacrifice, he laughed and made inappropriate comments. By doing so, Peewee was able to pull himself out of paralysis and hide his true emotions.

The Bonds of Friendship

In the book, when one of the soldiers in the squad unfortunately passes away, there is a lot of crying. The soldiers also seem to think a lot about that soldier and what they meant to the squad. For example, when Jenkins stepped on a land mine and blew up, it was the first death Richie had seen in the war. Richie recalls Jenkins and other dead squad members like Carroll and Brew. In war, you make friends. In the book, the main character Richie gets really close to Peewee, close enough to call him a best friend he made throughout the war. Richie could go to Peewee anytime to ask anything because of how close they had gotten. When the soldiers wrote home to family, they didn't seem to talk about the war. This was likely because they didn't want their parents or siblings to know how war really was. Instead, they wrote about other things to avoid the topic of war.

Conclusion

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book as it went into great detail about how soldiers in the Vietnam War reacted to different situations. The book offers a profound exploration of the psychological impact of war and the coping mechanisms soldiers employed to maintain their sanity. I would recommend this book to others. For those interested in an authentic depiction of the Vietnam War experience, Walter Dean Myers provides a narrative that is both gripping and thought-provoking.

References:

• Myers, W. D. (1988). Fallen Angels. Scholastic Inc.
• Jones, D. R. (1999). Vietnam War: The Experiences of Soldiers. Historical Review, 45(3), 112-134.