Memoir of War and Recovery Next 'One Book, One Community' Selection

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Karl Marlantes’ memoir and meditation, What It Is Like to Go To War, is the book chosen for the University of Arkansas “One Book, One Community” program next fall.

Marlantes is a decorated Vietnam War veteran and the author of the best-selling Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War (2011). His second book is more directly autobiographical, dealing with his experiences in battle but also addressing the problems he had returning to civilian life.

“Marlantes combines history, philosophy, literature and psychology in addressing the many different aspects of his book’s title, What It Is Like to Go To War,” said Kevin Fitzpatrick, co-chair of the One Book, One Community committee. “He is a veteran, a self-described survivor of post-traumatic stress disorder, a scholar and an outstanding writer. I think everyone in the community who reads this book and hears him speak will be enriched by the experience.”

Marlantes will give a public lecture at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 30, in Hillside Auditorium at the University of Arkansas. The event is free and open to the public. He will also speak to local book club members at the Fayetteville Public Library on Friday, Oct. 31.

Marlantes was a Marine Corps reservist while attending Yale University in the 1960s, and earned a Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University. He left Oxford in 1968 after one semester to go into active duty in Vietnam. He served as a platoon leader for one year and was awarded the Navy Cross, two Navy Commendation Medals for Valor, two Purple Hearts, and 10 air medals for his actions in combat.

Marlantes returned to Oxford and finished his master’s degree in philosophy, politics and education, then returned to the U.S., where he raised a family and worked for 30 years as a business consultant. He also spent that time dealing with his wartime experiences and adjusting to civilian life, while trying to write a novel about Vietnam. He eventually sought treatment for PTSD from the Veteran Administration (now Veterans Affairs). He has said that writing Matterhorn helped him come to terms with what he saw during the war.

What It Is Like to Go To War continues that process, in an effort to prepare future soldiers for the reality of war and to push for ways to help them return to peacetime life.