THE THIN RED LINE by James Jones

Note: I am not a paid reviewer, and I have purchased this title to read for my personal enjoyment.

This is the book for fans of war fiction heavy on battle action that is described with a literary flair. Charlie Company is sent to Guadalcanal to enter the jungle and do battle with an unseen, fanatical enemy who lies in wait. Jones puts us with the men in the discomfort of the jungle, as they fear hidden mortal dangers, and in quiet moments when they reflect on each other’s actions. We can hear the testosterone-fueled voices of stressed young men, quake with their fears, and are left to determine who is good and who is bad, if that is even possible. War is hell: no rousing John Philip Sousa march will ring in your ears as you read this one. If you’re a fan of Jones, there is of course his big hit From Here to Eternity, and another book of his with roots in WW2, Some Came Running, a massive work written in 1958. A WW2 veteran returns to ripple the waters of the small pond of the Midwestern town his brother lives in with behaviors that flow from his alcoholism, disillusionment, fatalism, and unrequited love. I nearly gave up early on at the daunting prospect of 1,200 plus pages, but kept at it to the surprising end, maybe searching for answers about the protagonist’s behavior, which I never found.