The Things They Carried

By: Tim O'Brien

Narrated by: Bryan Cranston

Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

This modern classic and New York Times best seller was a finalist for both the 1990 Pulitzer Prize and National Book Critics Circle Award and has become a staple of American classrooms. Hailed by The New York Times as "a marvel of storytelling", The Things They Carried’s portrayal of the boots-on-the-ground experience of soldiers in the Vietnam War is a landmark in war writing. Now, three-time Emmy Award winner Bryan Cranston, star of the hit TV series Breaking Bad, delivers an electrifying performance that walks the book’s hallucinatory line between reality and fiction and highlights the emotional power of the spoken word.

The soldiers in this collection of stories carried M-16 rifles, M-60 machine guns, and M-79 grenade launchers. They carried plastic explosives, hand grenades, flak jackets, and landmines. But they also carried letters from home, illustrated Bibles, and pictures of their loved ones. Some of them carried extra food or comic books or drugs. Every man carried what he needed to survive, and those who did carried their shattering stories away from the jungle and back to a nation that would never understand.

This audiobook also includes an exclusive recording “The Vietnam in Me,” a recount of the author’s trip back to Vietnam in 1994, revisiting his experience there as a soldier 25 years before, read by Tim O’Brien himself.

The Things They Carried was produced by Audible Studios in partnership with Playtone, the celebrated film and television production company founded by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, and producer of the award-winning series Band of Brothers, John Adams, and The Pacific, as well as the HBO movie Game Change.

For more from Audible and Playtone, click here.

©1990 Tim O'Brien (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Cranston may be the most charismatic embodiment of moral ambiguity we currently possess. There was always something comforting as well as menacing in Walter White's voice, and Cranston attacks O'Brien's sober, sinewy prose with slightly scary authority.... [I]f you were a binge-watcher of Breaking Bad it will be no big deal to spend six hours in his company here." ( The New York Times Book Review)

"Structurally the novel gestures to William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying, while Ryan's sensitive observations on Irish life seem responsive to the work of his compatriot Patrick McCabe. That Ryan does not look out of place in such literary company is a measure of his achievement." ( The Financial Times)

"The best of these stories--and none is written with less than the sharp edge of honed vision--are memory and prophecy. These tell us not where we were but where we are, and perhaps where we will be. . . . It is an ultimate, indelible image of war in our time, and in time to come." ( Los Angeles Times)

"O'Brien's haunting collection of connected stories about the Vietnam War is more alive than ever in this narration. Bryan Cranston's resonant, sometimes formal, performance often leaves the listener reeling. Cranston's voice is deep and patient, laying back to let the characters' collective pain take the fore. Memorable scenes include a man's receipt of his draft notice in "On the Rainy River," battle scenes in "The Man I Killed," and aspects of the war's aftermath in "Speaking of Courage." In all the works, Cranston offers a measured, compassionate voice. O'Brien's stories emphasize the importance of telling the truth of war stories, and Cranston's respect for his intent is clear and comforting. At times, his sonorous tone is hypnotic, but this is more an asset than a liability. All the better to make the listener feel." ( AudioFile)

Moving

This book offered so much - brutal honesty, descriptions of people and places that allowed me to, as much as is possible, know both, an inside exposure to the before, during and after of the author’s experience of a war that will always be with those who lived it. So well written and such a caring read. Highly recommended.

Moving

I was just a child when many of these events happened. I am trying to understand what the war in Vietnam was about and what it was like for the boys who were sent there. This book did an extraordinary job helping me with the latter. I am still not sure if anyone really understands the former.

Never stop complaining about how your life sucks

Mr O'Brien goes on and on about how his experience was so awful and bemoans his decision making. How life would have been so different for him had he only made different choices. Well, Mr O'Brien, you've made your choices and you choose to look only at the bad that comes from them. I feel sorry for you and for your loved ones who have to live with such negativity.


Signed
Iraq War and Desert Storm vet who chooses to look at all of the great decisions I've made in my life and not dwell on the poor ones and the awful experiences I've endured

'On the Rainy River' is all you need

This book, on its own, is exceptional. Bryan Cranston's narration takes it up a notch. The story "On the Rainy River" is transcendent. The rest of the book is good -- don't get me wrong -- and the bonus feature by O'Brien is a great closer, but "On the Rainy River" just takes the reader to another place. The details, the characters, the realization that we've all been in that spot at one time or another in our own lives ... it's simply captivating.

Other reviews you'll read about the great storytelling and the quick, fast-paced writing are all true. Buy it for those, yes. But really buy it for "On the Rainy River."

pretty good

moment where it grabbed me and some that i trailed off. really put me in the soldiers shoes.

Fair story of war

outstanding narration of Bryan Cranston, great story, very detailed and real, very extended on how war can change people behavior.

Heartfelt!!

Would you listen to The Things They Carried again? Why?

I am not one for repeating. But maybe.

What other book might you compare The Things They Carried to and why?

Hmm? not sure.

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

a fabulous voice and lots of feeling!

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

No, however it really makes you think about our role in that war and what it did to the soldiers on both sides.

Any additional comments?

nope

The Vietnam in Me

If you could sum up The Things They Carried in three words, what would they be?

Tragic, Terrific, True

What did you like best about this story?

Honesty of the writer. Brought the war to life for me. Helped me better understand the chaos, the horror, the absurdity, the aimlessness, and the madness of our involvement in Vietnam

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

His voice sounded like the story was meant to be told -- the sadness, the humor, the despair, the necessary detachment at time, the pain of dealing with the war without regard for morality or rationality.

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

Both

Any additional comments?

Vietnam is a painful chapter in our nation's history, filled with guilt, shame, divisiveness, anger, and hurt.. My best defense was to blot it out of my memory. It has taken me more than 40 years to find the courage to read any of the great books that have been written about this war. This was my first attempt to reopen that wound. Time and Tim O'Bien's wonderfully written, honest, and sensitively handled narrative made it possible for me to deal with the painful experiences of that era.

Good book for someone who thinks war is glorious

Any additional comments?

As someone who thinks war is inhumane, this book was unnecessary for me to read. If you are a person who thinks war has any redeeming quality, read this book.

An amazing book brought to life.

Tim O'Brien's stories from Vietnam are truly brought to life by Brian Cranston's narration. These are stories that will stick with you for a long time. It is one of the most well rounded looks at the life of a Vietnam veteran that has ever been published.