“Tree of Smoke” by Denis Johnson
I read about 10 or 20 pages of this book when I realized I didn’t like it and I wasn’t going to. It’s basically about some losers during the Vietnam War. Well written, but not for me.
Start with the opening, where on the day John F. Kennedy is assassinated, a young American sailor in the Philippines goes into the jungle and shoots a beautiful monkey, but he doesn’t know why, and then he is horrified to watch it die.
I decided to skip ahead. It didn’t get prettier.
Brothers argue. Later they have problems and spend time in prison. A prisoner of war is mutiliated. A nurse has to deliver a dead baby, most likely deformed because of defoliants used in the area. Later someone gets condemned to death. A plane with orphans on board crashes. The f-word is used so much your head will spin.
The book was a National Book Award finalist.
When I picked up “Tree of Smoke,” I had just finished “MASH” by Richard Hooker, the book on which the film and TV series were based. What a difference. Another war, but a positive look at humanity dealing with the worst things that can happen to people. Plus, it had me seeing the TV characters in my mind as I read along and laughing a lot, too. I realize the Vietnam War carries demons that “Tree of Smoke” may capture well. But I don’t want to read about them.
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