Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

A Novel

De: Ben Fountain

Narrado por: Oliver Wyman

A re-release of this award-winning, critically acclaimed novel just in time for its major motion picture release, directed by Two-time Academy Award® winner Ang Lee, screenplay by Jean-Christophe Castelli and featuring Joe Alwyn, Kristen Stewart, Chris Tucker, Garrett Hedlund, with Vin Diesel and Steve Martin.

A ferocious firefight with Iraqi insurgents--caught on tape by an embedded Fox News crew--has transformed the eight surviving men of Bravo Squad into America’s most sought-after heroes. For the past two weeks, the Bush administration has sent them on a media-intensive nationwide Victory Tour to reinvigorate public support for the war. Now, on this chilly and rainy Thanksgiving, the Bravos are guests of a Dallas football team, slated to be part of the halftime show.

Among the Bravos is Specialist William Lynn, a nineteen-year-old Texas native. Amid clamoring patriots sporting flag pins on their lapels and support our troops bumper stickers on their cars, the Bravos are thrust into the company of the team owner and his coterie of wealthy colleagues; a luscious born-again cheerleader; a veteran Hollywood producer; and supersized pro players eager for a vicarious taste of war. Among these faces Billy sees those of his family--his worried sisters and broken father—and Shroom, the philosophical sergeant who opened Billy’s mind and died in his arms.

Over the course of this day, Billy will begin to understand difficult truths about himself, his country, his struggling family, and his brothers-in-arms-soldiers both dead and alive. In the final few hours before returning to Iraq, Billy will drink and brawl, yearn for home and mourn those missing, face a heart-wrenching decision, and discover pure love and a bitter wisdom far beyond his years.

Poignant, riotously funny, and exquisitely heartbreaking, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk is a searing and powerful novel that has cemented Ben Fountain’s reputation as one of the finest writers of his generation.

Motion Picture Artwork ©2016 CTMG.

©2012 Ben Fountain (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Not my usual genre but well worth it.

This very "male" story about war and soldiers and one infantry's experiences both in combat and in being home sheds light on several themes of war. The Bravo company comes home over Thanksgiving following a fierce battle in theater, to receive a heroes' welcome at a pro football game. The story surveys themes of war and its philosophical underpinnings: what is a hero? Can a soldier fit in to society upon return? Can civilians understand the cost of war? The best part of the story is its depiction of love and loyalty among the soldiers. But let me be clear: this story is funny, crude and full of rich description. It was a pleasure.

good story less politics

a bit to anti-republican but enjoyed story nonetheless. always proud to read about service men and women

good read (listen)

It was a great story! not as action packed as I thought, kind of slow at some points when talking about movie deals. I want a sequel so I can know if they come back and if Billy sees Phaison again. I was sad when it ended

Did I Miss Something?

Was there a point? As an ex-grunt, admittedly over 40 years in the rearview mirror, I was comfortable with the dialog; we verbally beat each other senseless just for amusement's sake. I kept waiting for the epic conclusion, maybe for the grand philosophical insight...for something. But it never came. The tale just sort of drifted away. Maybe that was the point. I don't know.

Enjoyable story/performance awaiting a conclusion. Any conclusion. Good enough but not memorable. Kind of like Ham & Claymores. Smoke 'em, if you got 'em.

One of the best I've read in a while!

Where does Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This one is near the top. I think I enjoyed the audio more than I would have the book - I'd have been tempted to skip over some of the dialog - and definitely wouldn't have had all the voices so distinctly in my head.

What other book might you compare Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk to and why?

Not sure - war and football wouldn't be my go-to kind of book, but I read about this as one of the year's best fiction reads. It didn't disappoint. Amazing, laugh-out-loud funny at times, could bring you to tears at others. I don't have a personal perspective on war, but his depictions of Billy, his friendships, his family, his memories all seem very true to me. I kept thinking that this book would make a great movie - all the while our characters are trying to get their movie made. This speaks volumes to me - a book that takes place in one day at a football game that can develop characters, scenes, conflicts, suspense...enough for a movie is an amazing feat.

Have you listened to any of Oliver Wyman’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No - at times I thought his narration was a bit over the top...unnecessarily.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No - don't think I could sit still for that long, but I definitely had some driveway time as I wanted to finish a particular part.

fantastic

Would you consider the audio edition of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk to be better than the print version?

Never read the print version. I imagine this version is better because Oliver Wyman is such a damn good reader.

What other book might you compare Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk to and why?

Catch-22, humor, sadness, satire

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

So many wonderful character voices. he is a one-of-a-kind reader. His reading made this one of the best audiobooks I have ever listened to, out of about twenty.

If you could rename Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, what would you call it?

"Oh, My People"

Surprised

This book started off so badly, I felt rooked by the Audible editor's recommendation. HOWEVER, since I used a credit for this, I pluugged on. Who knew? It grew on me and I really liked it! It actually was worth listening to. Beware, there are strong stereotypes you just have to accept as honesty from the character and author's point of view. It is not politically correct. The narration was superb!

Five Stars for Story AND Performance

This is a sharp, hilarious and heartbreaking satire, beautifully performed (not just read) by Oliver Wyman. I enjoyed every minute of this book.

This is my favorite Audible book.

There will be a movie released this year that can't possibly be as good as the book. I have listened multiple times because the reader and the material are a perfect match. The imagery and undercurrent here are humorous in a cynical way. It's Texas, the Bush years, patriotism of the saddest kind, Cowboy football, good 'ol boys, and the young, handsome Billy Lynn, a pawn of the machine along with his compatriots from Alpha Company. Great novel, and great reading. Please write another novel, Ben Fountain!

Not what I expected - in a good way!

Any additional comments?

Usually war books don't do it for me. But this story is so wholly different, I not only enjoyed it, but recommended to to several people. The entire story takes place on Thanksgiving Day, when Billy and his crew are attending a Cowboys game before deploying back to Iraq. Although everything unfolds over one day, the author manages to weave in a lot of other threads - about their time in Iraq, about the friendship the guys share, about the family drama on the home-front. It's a cleverly constructed story, but what I enjoyed most was the humor - both in the form of dialogue between the soldiers (which may offend some because it's f-bomb heavy, but it rang true and hilarious to me), and the more subtle humor, which the author used to deliver an almost-under-the-radar political commentary.