Fallen Angels

by Walter Dean Myers

Overview

A coming-of-age tale for young adults set in the trenches of the Vietnam War in the late 1960s, this is the story of Perry, a Harlem teenager who volunteers for the service when his dream of attending college falls through. Sent to the front lines, Perry and his platoon come face-to-face with the Vietcong and the real horror of warfare. But violence and death aren't the only hardships. As Perry struggles to find virtue in himself and his comrades, he questions why black troops are given the most dangerous assignments, and why the U.S. is even there at all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545055765
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/2008
Edition description:	Anniversary Edition
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	79,644
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.00(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

The late Walter Dean Myers was the 2012-2013 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. He was the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of an award-winning body of work which includes Somewhere in the Darkness, Slam!, and Monster. Mr. Myers has received two Newbery Honor medals, five Coretta Scott King Author Book Awards, and three National Book Award Finalist citations. In addition, he was the winner of the first Michael L. Printz Award.

Editorial Reviews

A tour of duty for a young soldier in Vietnam is vividly presented in Myers's exceptional novel. Ages 13-up. (May)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Gr 10 Up A riveting account of the Vietnam War from the perspective of a young black soldier. Richie Perry, a 17 year old from Harlem, arrrives in Vietnam in 1967. His first-person narrative provides an immediacy to the events and characters revealed. His experiences become readers' experiences, as do his fears and his insight about this war, any war. ``We spent another day lying around. It seemed to be what the war was about. Hours of boredom, seconds of terror.'' During one of those terrifying times, a large number of American soldiers are killed. Because they cannot be carried back, the decision is made to burn the bodies. ``I was afraid of the dead guys. I saw them, arms limp, faces sometimes twisted in anguish, mostly calm, and I was afraid of them. They were me. We wore the same uniform, were the same height, had the same face. They were me, and they were dead.'' In the end, when Richie is wounded, he returns home. This is a compelling, graphic, necessarily gruesome, and wholly plausible novel. It neither condemns nor glorifies the war but certainly causes readers to think about the events. Other difficult issues, such as race and the condition of the Vietnamese people, are sensitively and realistically incorporated into the novel. The soldiers' language is raw, but appropriate to the characters. This is a book which should be read by both young adults and adults. Maria B. Salvadore, District of Columbia Public Library

School Library Journal

J.D. Jackson brings listeners directly into the jungles of Vietnam with 17-year-old African-American Richie Perry and his fellow soldiers in Walter Dean Myers’s classic story of boys and war. Death is an inevitable companion, bringing the pain of loss and a longing to return to “the world,” no matter how difficult it may have been. Jackson ably navigates the rough language, racism, and xenophobia that are the realities of the story. A few production missteps do not detract from the deep bonds that form among the boys as they struggle to keep themselves alive despite the ineptitude and hubris of army leadership. Once again, we journey into the incomprehensible landscape of war. S.G. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

FEBRUARY 2016 - AudioFile