Matterhorn

By Karl Marlantes

Matterhorn - Karl Marlantes
  • Release Date: 2010-04-01
  • Genre: Literary Fiction
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 466 Ratings

Description

Intense, powerful, and compelling, Matterhorn is an epic war novel in the tradition of Norman Mailer’s The Naked and the Dead and James Jones’s The Thin Red Line. It is the timeless story of a young Marine lieutenant, Waino Mellas, and his comrades in Bravo Company, who are dropped into the mountain jungle of Vietnam as boys and forced to fight their way into manhood. Standing in their way are not merely the North Vietnamese but also monsoon rain and mud, leeches and tigers, disease and malnutrition. Almost as daunting, it turns out, are the obstacles they discover between each other: racial tension, competing ambitions, and duplicitous superior officers. But when the company finds itself surrounded and outnumbered by a massive enemy regiment, the Marines are thrust into the raw and all-consuming terror of combat. The experience will change them forever. 

Written by a highly decorated Marine veteran over the course of thirty years, Matterhorn is a spellbinding and unforgettable novel that brings to life an entire world—both its horrors and its thrills—and seems destined to become a classic of combat literature.

Reviews

  • Matterhorn

    5
    By sfguy1966
    This is a fine book. I fought in I Corp in the area of Matterhorn in 1966. Marlantes leaves out no detail. The man was there and the terrain, fighting, bugs, fatigue…ring true. Matterhorn is a page turner I did not want to end.
  • Matterhorn Review

    4
    By Pugdog1228
    Outstanding horrifying journey that could have easily been non fiction. Leaves you with the feeling of struggling through the jungle, terrified, as well as the camaraderie, brotherhood, and exhilaration of combat. Hopefully as close as most us will ever come to the real thing. To all of our vets, but, especially those from Vietnam, I'm so sorry, and thank you from the bottom of my soul!
  • Real War

    5
    By Lt.Dan12891
    If you want nonstop action and shooting, then I would kindly suggest that you find another book about Vietnam. This is the real day-to-day account of life in Vietnam; you really get a sense of the daily tribulations that these men went through. Even without nonstop action, I still found it to be a page turner, and finished it in two days because I grew so attached to the characters. As a young college-aged male, I couldn't stop thinking about what I would do if I was in Lt. Mellas's place, and being forced to make the decisions regarding the life and death of my men at such a young age. If you want a true perspective of war and of why men fight, then Matterhorn is for you.
  • Matterhorn

    5
    By Gordyb102
    As a marine who served from 1966-70, this book brought back many memories of the corps. The author did an excellent job describing the day to day life of a grunt marine serving in Viet Nam. An excellent read.
  • Not worth it

    2
    By GrubsGrabs
    I kept looking for something exciting and intriguing in this book. Something to keep me engrossed. But other than a few fleeting passages of activity, the rest was a droll series of guys drudging through swamps and leeches and heat and...nothing. It was almost like 'Friends' staged in Vietnam (sans the women and the Soup Nazi) . I finally could take no more and dropped out 1/2 way through.
  • Awesome

    4
    By Auggie's Man
    Excellent writing that took you into the battles and lives of our soldiers fighting in that war (or any war) to expose it's humanity, futility, character-building and useless death and destruction. I remember the days of the weekly body counts on the news and this exposes the insanity of it all.