”The Naked and the Dead,” is the novel I have been plowing through. Norman Mailer. How coincidental there is a documentary on him in theaters now?
Actually, I began “plowing” through and have come to the “can’t wait to finish” status. The writing depicts the men of a platoon during WWII. Rough language, rough characters, and in-depth studies of the men who braved their way in a culture of war. I like to think I can tough out bad situations, but after his descriptions of intimate moments with death, sickness, anti-Semitism, constant weather challenges and personality clashes, I would have folded early on. I’m glad I stuck with this tome. It has been enlightening. I have felt the moods and quirks of these men, smelled the odors they lived with, languished in the despair they endured. Now I have to see who survives!
And…it’s one of those rich books where I’m hanging on each and every word written so masterfully. I’ll be heading to a theater soon!