Fallen Angels

Myers, W. D. (1988). Fallen angels. New York: Scholastic Inc. ISBN 0545055768

Plot Analysis

                     Seventeen-year-old Richie Perry graduates from high school and, unable to afford college, decides that joining the Army is the only way out of Harlem.  Soon he finds himself on his way to Vietnam, scared and unsure of what he has gotten himself into.  He forms a friendship with another black soldier, a loud-mouth kid who calls himself Peewee, and a quiet boy named Jenkins.  Despite promises that there will be only light work and little to no combat in Vietnam due to impending peace talks, Perry finds himself in the field sooner than he expected and is witness to Jenkins' death when the unfortunate soldier steps on a landmine.  This is a wake-up call for Perry and the beginning of the nagging question that plagues him more and more throughout the story - what are we doing here?  The more he witnesses - dishonest reports on how many Vietcong are killed, a racist commander who puts the black soldiers in the worst possible positions, another commander who is only concerned about a promotion rather than the safety of his troops - the bigger problem he has with this war and how it is being conducted, and over everything, the role he is being forced to play.

Critical Analysis

                           Perry's story is told simply, cleanly, and with realistic speech through his first person internal monologue.  There is no fancy prose here, but it is not necessary.  The horrors of Vietnam - dead Vietcong soldiers thrown about like ragdolls, fellow soldiers killed in the blink of an eye, the utter chaos of battle and the shock of being wounded - are razor sharp and quietly disturbing through the eyes of a scared soldier so young he is practically still in high school.  We feel Perry's moments of panic and confusion, his constant disorienting uncertainty of what exactly he is supposed to be doing and, the larger question, what exactly he is doing in the war.  Part of what makes this book so effective is how simply it is rendered.  There are no long dramatic soliloquies or life-changing conclusions - just the genuine emotions of a boy who is deeply out of his element and struggling to come to terms with life and death.  Another effective element of this novel is Myers' use of time.  He cuts back and forth between Perry's time in Vietnam and his life back in Harlem, revealing for the reader a picture of what he escaped when he joined the Army.  This is another question that haunts Perry the more deeply immersed he is in combat: why did he join?  Part of his reasoning was to create a better life for himself and his little brother, but he cannot deny the fact that the military was also an escape.  There was no future for him in Harlem outside of helping his alcoholic mother keep things together.  This understanding of Perry's past deepens his character.  The surrounding cast of characters is entertaining - particularly the brash and always outspoken Peewee, who provides comic relief as well as shelter for Perry from the horrible reality of his situation.  They are an interesting pair, Perry quiet and Peewee far too loud, providing a nice element of contrast in the story that brings out both characters and gives them dimension.  The final important characteristic of this novel is the details of the place.  The reader feels the heat of Vietnam, the humidity, the crawling bugs, the choking vegetation, the same bland food over and over, the boredom of the base and the frantic energy of combat.  This novel is a nerve-wracking experience addressing deep, important themes on an emotional, political, and moral level.

Reader's Annotation

                                  Perry joins the Army and finds himself in the throes of Vietnam, scared and uncertain of what to do.  The more he learns about the war and the way it is being conducted, the more he questions both his own involvement and his country's.

About the Author

                             Walter Dean Myers was inexplicably given away by his family to a man named Howard Dean and subsequently raised as a son by Dean and his wife Florence.  He did not perform well in school, although he was a good writer, and was told by a teacher who anticipated his dropping out to never stop writing, no matter what happened to him.  At seventeen, he did indeed drop out and joined the Army.   Later he remembered these words and began writing again about his adolescence, which he says was the most difficult time in his life.  He has achieved major success and created a huge body of work that is critically acclaimed.  In addition to writing, he also loves basketball and wonders sometimes what his life would have been like had he been good enough to get into the NBA.

                             Myers has been honored with numerous prestigious awards, such as the Michael L. Printz Award, the Margaret A. Edwards Award, and five Coretta Scott King Awards, among many others.  His reviews are consistently glowing, many calling attention to his realism and the striking effect that his works have on the reader.  Kirkus Reviews refers to him as one of the most important writers of children's books of our age.

Genre

         Historical - Vietnam

Challenge Issues

                          Possible challenge issues in this book include violence, profanity, racial slurs, depictions of war, and anti-war themes. In the event of a challenge, I would consult the challenge defense file prepared for this book. The challenge defense file would include: positive reviews from credible sources for the purpose of proving merit to the challenger; negative reviews in order to inform me on what might be challenged; a written explanation of my own rationale for including the book in the collection as well as a summary of the plot; the American Library Association Bill of Rights; a review of my branch’s selection policy; and, as a last resort, an explanation of the reconsideration policy for my library and an official reconsideration form.

Curriculum Ties

                           English and Writing, or History: for English and Writing, point of view and character development; for History, the Vietnam War.

Booktalk

               Imagine what it would be like if you had to head off to war right out of high school, when you were only seventeen years old, and you had no idea what you were supposed to be doing.  This is what it feels like to Perry, who finds himself in Vietnam because he couldn't afford college and there seemed to be no other way out for him.  He's trying just to keep his head above water, trying to just stay alive, but more than that he can't help but wonder what the point of all this is and why he is there at all.  This story is not just about Vietnam, but about coming of age and questioning everything around you.

Reading level and Interest Age

                                                   Grades 9-12.

Why I Included This Book

                                             Walter Dean Myers is one of the great authors of young adult literature.  I chose this book of his in particular because the issue of war is so relevant to today's young adults.  The way this novel is written makes it accessible without talking down to teens, so they can consider the questions of war and politics through a regular character thrust into a situation he cannot control.

References
Myers, W.D. (n.d.). Biography. Retrieved from http://www.walterdeanmyers.net/bio.html