where men win glory

I love Jon Krakauer's books - after reading "Into Thin Air" I had nightmares about climbing Everest. So I was eager to pick up "Where Men Win Glory" about Pat Tillman.

You know all the massive fury you endured daily during the Bush administration as their deeds ranged from hopelessly incompetent to pure evil? This book swamped me with that same feeling - ugly rage. Krakauer does his usual of romanticizing a young man and portraying him as a noble hero - Tillman was a pro football player, but he drove a Volvo and liked cats. He left his football playing job to join the military in search of something real and true. He was killed by friendly fire and the administration launched a fraudulent scheme to hide the truth and keep public opinion in favor of the war. It made me extremely sad and angry to read.




I also read "A Beautiful Mind" by Sylvia Nasar about John Nash. The author is totally enamored of him as a mathematical genius - but in fact, he was a pretty horrible person even without the mental illness. He was violence and abusive towards women - refused to support his own child so the mother had to give him up?!? He was pretty despicable so I didn't feel too sympathetic during his mental illness struggles. Who cares how beautiful the mind is when the heart is so ugly?

The movie sanitized his life and cleverly dramatized what it's like to have schizophrenia. It is so well-written, though. Reading this book is like falling into the comfiest bed of pillows - you can relax, you know you're in skilled hands.