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The Long Walk: A Story of War and the Life That Follows Audiobook
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(3.04) - 531 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In the tradition of Michael Herr’s Dispatches and works by such masters of the memoir as Mary Karr and Tobias Wolff, a powerful account of war and homecoming. Brian Castner served three tours of duty in the Middle East, two of them as the commander of an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit in Iraq. Days and nights he and his team—his brothers—would venture forth in heavily armed convoys from their Forward Operating Base to engage in the nerve-racking yet strangely exhilarating work of either disarming the deadly improvised explosive devices that had been discovered, or picking up the pieces when the alert came too late. They relied on an army of remote-controlled cameras and robots, but if that technology failed, a technician would have to don the eighty-pound Kevlar suit, take the Long Walk up to the bomb, and disarm it by hand. This lethal game of cat and mouse was, and continues to be, the real war within America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But The Long Walk is not just about battle itself. It is also an unflinching portrayal of the toll war exacts on the men and women who are fighting it. When Castner returned home to his wife and family, he began a struggle with a no less insidious foe, an unshakable feeling of fear and confusion and survivor’s guilt that he terms The Crazy. His thrilling, heartbreaking, stunningly honest book immerses the reader in two harrowing and simultaneous realities: the terror and excitement and camaraderie of combat, and the lonely battle against the enemy within—the haunting memories that will not fade, the survival instincts that will not switch off. After enduring what he has endured, can there ever again be such a thing as “normal”? The Long Walk will hook you from the very first sentence, and it will stay with you long after its final gripping page has been turned.
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"This book grabbed me from the first sentence and really gave a unique and intimate look at the war and its impacts, especially for those of us who have had little direct contact with or impact from the war. Castner's writing style is engaging and strong while also laced with tangible emotion. Perhaps a few less paragraphs about the Crazy that haunts him throughout the book would have made it flow a touch smoother, but that's not really a criticism; rather an acknowledgement of the dark and unforgettable impacts of war on one man's life."
— Jon (4 out of 5 stars)
Awards
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Selected for the August 2012 Indie Next List
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A Kirkus Reviews Top 25 Book for Nonfiction, July 2012
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Nominated for the Barnes & Noble Discover Award
The Long Walk Listener Reviews
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" A tough read. A Silicon Valley Reads selection. This is the story of the author who is deployed to the Middle East 2 times and is on a bomb-defusing squad. Horrific stories of what happened over there. And the terrible toll it takes on the mind of the soldiers. "
— Judy, 2/19/2014 -
" Riveting and eloquently written, deserves a much wider audience. "
— Harry, 1/29/2014 -
" I picked up Brian Castner's book since it was chosen as one of the two selections for this year's Silicon Valley Reads. I did not expect to like or necessarily even finish the book. However, from the very first sentence to the last, I could hardly put this book down. I ended up reading it in 24 hours. I highly recommend it to everyone. "
— Becky, 1/21/2014 -
" So, so, so good. Seriously, so good. An amazing description of PTSD and other mental health issues in a Iraq war veteran. "
— Rana, 1/12/2014 -
" Generally speaking, I like depressing books, but this one was SUPER depressing. I liked it, because it was written differently, and the way the author continually went back and forth from past to present was interesting, but I seriously need some ice cream and a hug after this one. "
— Dawn, 1/7/2014 -
" Humbling. Appreciable. Real lesson for me on stress management. . Love it "
— Shae, 1/4/2014 -
" I thought this book was very good. I was very surprised and pleased with how well written it was. If you are a person who doesn't care for war memoirs you could read this book simply for the beauty of the writing. "
— Brunhilde, 12/18/2013 -
" Excellent evocation of the MidEast war(s) the US has been fighting from a bomb de-fuser with 3 tours plus. His description of PTSD is less compelling., read by therapist. "
— Anne, 12/7/2013 -
" This was an interesting read about a bomb disector, who works to disengage live bombs and IEDs in Iraq. He eventually returned home with PTSD, which he referred to as "Crazy". I enjoyed his perspective, but I did not engage me like I was expecting. It was okay, but not great. "
— Shaun, 4/3/2013 -
" This book should be read by anyone with PTSD or anyone living with someone with PTSD. I was fairly disturbed with the end of the book - the VA at it's finest. "
— Heather, 3/15/2013 -
" This was a very disturbing book. "
— Rose, 2/21/2013 -
" 3/8/13. I am a psychologist who works closely with veterans. Thanks for this look inside Brian! You've helped lots of your brothers by telling your story. "
— MaryJS, 2/3/2013 -
" Heart-wrenching and surprisingly poetic. Reads more like a novel than a memoir. "
— Brock, 8/15/2012 -
" Some gripping accounts of bomb disposal work in Iraq, and the resulting PTSD the author suffers. Our soldiers are coming home damaged. "
— Mark, 7/26/2012 -
" Savagely honest. Mr. Castner shares his inner thoughts in a self-effacing, candid manner. I don't think he wrote this book looking for any attention or glory, I get the feeling he wrote it because it helped him and he truly wanted to help others. "
— Jason, 7/16/2012
About Brian Castner
Brian Castner is the author of Disappointment River, All the Ways We Kill and Die, and the war memoir The Long Walk, which was adapted into an opera. He is a former explosive ordnance disposal officer and veteran of the Iraq War, and his journalism and essays have appeared in the New York Times, Wired, Esquire, and on NPR. He is a two-time grantee of the Pulitzer Center, and is the co-editor of The Road Ahead: Stories from the Forever War.