Buffalo Afternoon [Mass Market Paperback]

Susan Fromberg Schaeffer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1990

"Remarkable . . . The entire Vietnam experience [in] one epic narrative." The New York Times Book Review
For Pete Bravado, the war begins with home and family in Brooklyn: his grandfather's broken dreams, his father's ice-hard heart, his mother's tragic affection, and his own disillusionment and delinquency. Raised against the grain of his true nature, Pete seeks escape in the army -- but instead of finding freedom, he finds a madness in himself that answers the madness of war. And when he comes home, a new struggle begins -- a struggle to see what the war has made him, so he can begin to remake himself.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Schaeffer has again produced a tour de force in this stunning Vietnam chronicle, in which she conveys the emotions and actions of men in battle and the anguish of those who survive and are irrevocably scarred. She does this in a narrative of epic length that moves, with few lapses, with the implacable power of fate," commended PW. Author tour.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

At novel's open in Vietnam, young Li is standing on her water buffalo's back when he is shot by American soldiers; emblem of her brutalized country, she haunts what follows like a conscience. Meanwhile, in America, Pete Bravado grows up lonely and confused in an Italian-American family that has just missed the American dream. The two are "wandering souls" who meet briefly when Bravado serves in Vietnam. His service is the centerpiece of the novel, and though initially Schaeffer seems only to be telling and not showing us what happens to him, eventually the telling becomes immensely powerful. For Bravado--as for America itself--there is no explanation for what he has seen, and no absolution; the war "is never going to be over." Only on the final page of this swift if densely detailed novel does Schaeffer offer us some hope: after this war, "Maybe we're new Americans." But what she has shown us so wrenchingly is the old America in agony, and if her reach sometimes exceeds her grasp, still she is to be commended for her vision.
- Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 562 pages
• Publisher: Ivy Books (July 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804105804
• ISBN-13: 978-0804105804
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,891,435 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "Vietnam book" for both men and women, November 6, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Buffalo Afternoon (Mass Market Paperback)

Susan Fromberg Schaeffer's Buffalo Afternoon tells the story of a young man's journey from his urban ethnic neighborhood to the jungles of Vietnam and back. Unlike many popular works of fiction about the era, this book does not solely concentrate on the "blood and guts" either during the war or afterwards. It also explores the hero's complex relationships with his wife, family, and other Vietnam Vets. The men who actually served are not the only victims of this war - the wife suffers the effects of her husband's PTSD, and later, when he finally connects to other veterans, has to tolerate homeless or drug addicted or just plain strange "brothers" invading her home at all hours of the day and night, eating the food, drinking the beer, and throwing things at the TV set when the news stories displease them. Required reading for all vets, all vets families, and all vets friends

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A sad but wothwhile read!, June 30, 2011

By 

Sops "fsop" (IL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Buffalo Afternoon (Mass Market Paperback)

This is another good book to add to your library chronicling the war in Vietnam. The more you read about this chapter in our history the more you understand the damage that occurred to the minds of the soldiers involved in that military action. The suffering does not stop when you leave the battle area and requires a great deal of support from loved ones to 'make you whole' again. We owe them!!

4.0 out of 5 stars gift for a friend, October 8, 2011

By 

ellie - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Buffalo Afternoon (Mass Market Paperback)

This was a special gift for a friend who was unable to find this for himself. He wasvery pleased to have received a copy shortly after we discussed it