Matterhorn

A Novel of the Vietnam War

By: Karl Marlantes

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot

Length: 21 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

An incredible publishing story—written over the course of thirty years by a highly decorated Vietnam veteran, a New York Times bestseller for sixteen weeks, a National Indie Next, and a USA Today bestseller—Matterhorn has been hailed as a "brilliant account of war" (New York Times Book Review).

Matterhorn is an epic war novel in the tradition of Norman Mailer's The Naked and the Dead and James Jones' 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.

Matterhorn is a visceral and spellbinding novel about what it is like to be a young man at war. It is an unforgettable story that transforms the tragedy of Vietnam into a powerful and universal story of courage, camaraderie, and sacrifice—a parable not only of the war in Vietnam but of all war, and a testament to the redemptive power of literature.

A bonus PDF is included, with maps, a Chain of Command hierarchy, a glossary, and other interesting facts and information.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2010 Karl Marlantes (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“ Matterhorn is one of the most powerful and moving novels about combat, the Vietnam War, and war in general that I have ever read.” (Dan Rather)

“Brings a long, torturous war back to life with realistic characters and authentic, thrilling combat sequences.” ( Publishers Weekly)

“Unforgettable.… A beautifully crafted novel of unrivaled authenticity and power, filled with jungle heroism, crackerjack inventiveness, mud, blood, brotherhood, hatred, healing, terror, bureaucracy, politics, unfathomable waste, and unfathomable love." (Christina Robb, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist)

Vietnam

There are times when you just don’t want to be reminded of the foolishness and insanity of those years. This won’t be for everyone. But the men there were real people and this book does the job of reminding the reader if that. There is no end but the book ends. Just like fir those who were there.

Grit and Grime

I feel a bit guilty when I enjoy a story about an epoch such as the Vietnam War. Anyway, this is a well written story. The characters are real and relatable and the protagonist earned my empathy. Attention to detail and a lack of romanticism makes this one of my favorite reads/listens. I revere Vietnam Vets even more.

Best War Book from Audible????

Author-outstanding! Narrator-Spectacular! Story-Rivetting! My favorite in this gendre.

high quality piece

this was a wonderful though tragic story based in the great tragedy of war. I highly recommend this story.

Tough listening at times but powerful!!!

Any additional comments?

This was a tough book to get through. First up it is LONG and deals with a difficult subject. The author definitely conveys the multiple issues that soldiers fighting in Vietnam experienced: camaraderie, humor, friendship, racial undertones, class system, inadequacies, bravery, appalling conditions, suffering......some of the incidents are drawn out and at times the story was slow (listening to a 30 minute episode about someone nearly die from having a leech crawl into their penis was tough !!!). However, that may be due to the richness of the character development. The narrator was very good and dealt with a variety of accents very well.

Superb Book

I often have trouble with war books because I find it difficult to follow the action that usually takes place on a grand scale. This one follows a single company over a relatively short time period and it is the characters and not the battle strategies that take the center.

It is often a difficult listen because the trials of merely surviving in that jungle and political environment were so difficult for the players. What made it an easy listen was an outstanding reading.

As long as you are not squeemish, it is a book not to be missed.

Best Audio book yet.

Would you listen to Matterhorn again? Why?

I don't listen to book twice.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Hawk.

What about Bronson Pinchot’s performance did you like?

He transforms into each char perfectly.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

All the above.

Any additional comments?

Don't worry about reading any more reviews. Just get this book.

Gripping account of Vietnam War

My wife and I started this book on a long car trip, and were hooked by the first hour. The story, although stated to be a novel, seems to resemble what I imagine to be real life for the Marines in that war, at that time. I strongly suspect it is pretty much autobiographical.

I've recommended it enthusiastically, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who has a loved one in active duty in a combat zone, for fear that it would heighten their anxiety.

One of the best "novels" I've read in a long time.

Great book

Would you listen to Matterhorn again? Why?

It's a great book. I probably wouldn't listen to it again, but that's not a shot at the book. It's just a book that spends a good deal of time impressing on the reader some horrific realities about war. These are fine to experience once, but I'm not gonna dive back in to "the shit" on purpose.

What does Bronson Pinchot bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Bronson Pinchot is stellar, as always.

Any additional comments?

If you're sensitive to racial slurs, the book has a lot of them. It's set during Vietnam, so some language is to be expected of course.

Band of Brothers on steroids!!

Any additional comments?

This book was amazing. It lived up to all the hype. The narration was dynamite. I can't use enough adjectives. By far the best book I've read.