Saturday Samplers to discuss "The Things They Carried"

Bernardsville Library’s book group, Saturday Samplers, will meet on Saturday, March 7 at 3:30 pm to discuss “The Things They Carried” (1990) by Tim O’Brien. [The author will not be present.]

A groundbreaking meditation on war, memory, imagination, and the redemptive power of storytelling, “The Things They Carried” is a collection of interrelated short pieces which ultimately reads with the dramatic force and tension of a novel. With more than two million copies in print, the book is a classic work of American literature that has not stopped changing minds and lives since it was published. The book is a New York Times ‘Book of the Century’ selection and was a Pulitzer Prize finalist.

Since its first publication, “The Things They Carried” has become an unparalleled Vietnam testament and a profound study of men at war that illuminates the capacity, and the limits, of the human heart and soul. “Tim O’Brien adds his second title to the short list of essential fiction about Vietnam. . . . [H]e captures the war’s pulsating rhythms and nerve-racking dangers. But he goes much further. By moving beyond the horror of the fighting to examine with sensitivity and insight the nature of courage and fear, by questioning the role that imagination plays in helping to form our memories and our own versions of truth, he places “The Things They Carried” high up on the list of best fiction about any war,”-- New York Times Book Review.

Led by Program/PR Assistant Evelyn Fischel, Saturday Samplers is a book discussion group dedicated to sampling various kinds of literature, including short stories, nonfiction, new and old novels, and even teen fiction. Its goal is to search out interesting, noteworthy, and sometimes overlooked books. Readers can find information about the group and about the books and authors on the reading list at http://saturdaysamplers.blogspot.com. No sign-up is needed to join the discussion. Call the library at 766-0118 for more information.