Customer Reviews

The War Zone

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Where in the world do I start? I had never heard of the War Zone until I began to read about Tim Roth's proposed film. I admire Roth's acting and have been a fan of Ray Winstone (he gets the 'nice guy' role of Dad) since his debut in 'Scum'. Being a pedantic sort of person I felt bound to read the novel before I saw the film and got left with too concrete an impression of how the characters look. I've always been a fast reader but I devoured this book in a little over a day. Stuart's story is utterly compelling, I couldn't understand Jessie's motivation at all. It obsessed me, was this girl sociopathic in her total indifference to the people she hurts? Or is she so damaged by what has happened to her that life means nothing more than a search for the ultimate taboo to break? Lesbian exhibitionism, beach sex with Nick, sex with both dad and brother, what's next for Jessica? Beautiful, intelligent, deadly - it is all too easy to dismiss Jessie as the instigator of the relationship, to dismiss her as a spoiled Lolita wreaking havoc for the ultimate thrill. Ultimately though, Jess is a victim and dad can't escape the fact that he is an abuser who destroys his entire family. Tom is a superb character; a turbulent mix of humour, anger and frustration. I thought the novel was fantastic, particularly in it's climactic scene and the close collaboration of author Stuart and director Roth (Stuart wrote the screenplay and was closely involved with the casting of the family) leads me to expect great things of the film. Get watching and reading folks, the subject matter is horrific and it is graphic but it is something we all need to face. For all it's horror, this novel exerts a grim fascination.

There are two adversaries in the war being fought here: Tom, the narrator, allied with his violent rebelliousness, and his older sister, Jessie, who is having sex with their father (at her instigation). Caught in the middle are their mother, and the new baby, and the local biker scumbags in the small Cornish town to which they have moved from the train wreck of London. Jessie, who is carnality personified, insists there must be nothing she would not do, while Tom, who hates his sister and adores her in equal measure, isn't nearly the bad boy he wants to be -- or thinks he ought to be. Stuart's prose is intensely vivid and impossible to glide over, no matter how uncomfortable you become at some of the scenes he paints. A book that is meant to be disturbing and succeeds. "Brilliant," as Jessie would say.

The pleasure of reading this book comes from the fact that is different from the film with the same title. It is very disturbing, sometimes funny,
and it's okay to read it, it's just a really good book. The film's script was also written by Stuart so it's a good thing to compare these two original version. To me, the book is about betrayal, madness and decadence while the film focuses straight on the effects of incest.

This is a compelling coming of age story told through the eyes of an adolescent boy in England, who witnesses a breakdown within his family. At times this book is difficult and shocking, but it well worth a read.

It is a classic and is still very relevant today. It deals with struggles of a family and abuse. An important novel and a must read!

This book as been in print for some time but that does not, in any way at all, diminish it's impact for a new reader. This is a searing, powerful book full of amazing prose, intense characters and a darkly beautiful storyline. Alexander has a fantastic quality to his writing and the fact that this book apparently, 'won' the Whitbread but was stripped due to it's content makes it all the more compelling! Enjoy.

Despite the storied 20 year history of both the novel and subsequent movie, I was ignorant of its existence.

And quite a history The War Zone has; the novel was stripped of the Whitbread Prize (now the Costa book awards.) An event that Stuart himself credits as far more helpful in promotion of his book than perhaps just receiving the award itself. Script adaptations of The War Zone by Stuart number in the tens, and it seemed a successful film adaptation would remain in "development hell" for all eternity.

The War Zone is a dark, unwavering narrative filled with elegant prose. A book oft touted as about incest and abuse, was to me, a deep and layered texture about middle-class suburban despondence. The true disconnectedness and alienation that is male adolescence (I've been there!) is compounded by a world spiraling out of control. As a reader, the comfort of familiarity is ripped away as an impending sense of dread and uneasiness builds. To be inside the head of a young boy, Tom, surprisingly evoked more pity than sympathy. All of Tom's innocence, his childhood, become forever stained by the knowledge of his father's sexual abuse of his sister Jessica. As I read, my mind stiffened. I braced for impending impact, almost certain of its trajectory. And suddenly, what I knew, was not what I knew. Tom's fear and his inability to change the outcome of even his own life paralyzes the reader.

The bleak and muted English countryside enraptured me. Even though I've never been to the United Kingdom, Stuart conjures a middle class moroseness that I'm all too familiar with here in the States. I enjoyed the subtle, stifled elements of the world. There is a realness and depth that is unnerving.

In literature and film, victims of sexual abuse are too often painted as helpless and subdued, call it the "lifetime movie effect." Here, Jessica presents as a strong character, and even appears to instigate sexual encounters with her father. While it is clear Jessica is the victim of sexual abuse, The War Zone paints in shades of grey. In an unflinchingly real look at sexual abuse, the reader is left with a conflicted view of the `relationship' - Does Jessica truly believe she is having sex with her father of her own volition? Or is she so emotionally damaged that her only way to cope with this terrible abuse is to somehow to claim it as her own?

As I read, I was reminded of my first read of Anthony Burgess` A Clockwork Orange. A book in which the most utterly taboo things were explored in an equally unflinching light. As a younger reader I was shocked and delighted at the shifts and turns it offered. Like The War Zone; Clockwork haunted me long after I set it down.

For me, this was a deeply personal book. Some may ask "how could you enjoy something with such a horrid subject matter?" I'm not sure I have an exact answer to that. There is nothing `feel good' about it. And yet, I found it captivating and meaningful. The War Zone has found a permanent place on my bookshelf.

[...]

This is an incredibly upsetting book. The author's writing skill notwithstanding, I doubt I could recommend this novel to anyone I know.
The War Zone is told by protagonist Tom in present tense. He is the pre-teenaged younger brother of Jessica, a teenager "of loose virtue" whose conquests include the seduction of their father. This is the story of Tom's discovery of the incestuous relationship after the birth of their younger brother, and how it wreaks havoc on his prepubescent mind.
As I said, this book is well-written. Nonetheless, I found it horribly disturbing. I might consider recommending it to an adult, but by no means would I give it to an adolescent, no matter how mature he or she might be. This does not portray an ordinary family, no matter how loosely one defines "ordinary." Better written than VC Andrews's Dollanganger series, the plot constantly challenges incest and why Tom thinks it's wrong despite his sister's arguments. The War Zone does not commend these actions, but breaks the reader's heart when reading from the point of view of poor Tom. The very typing of this review disturbed me.

Despite the storied 20 year history of both the novel and subsequent movie, I was ignorant of its existence.

And quite a history The War Zone has; the novel was stripped of the Whitbread Prize (now the Costa book awards.) An event that Stuart himself credits as far more helpful in promotion of his book than perhaps just receiving the award itself. Script adaptations of The War Zone by Stuart number in the tens, and it seemed a successful film adaptation would remain in "development hell" for all eternity.

The War Zone is a dark, unwavering narrative filled with elegant prose. A book oft touted as about incest and abuse, was to me, a deep and layered texture about middle-class suburban despondence. The true disconnectedness and alienation that is male adolescence (I've been there!) is compounded by a world spiraling out of control. As a reader, the comfort of familiarity is ripped away as an impending sense of dread and uneasiness builds. To be inside the head of a young boy, Tom, surprisingly evoked more pity than sympathy. All of Tom's innocence, his childhood, become forever stained by the knowledge of his father's sexual abuse of his sister Jessica. As I read, my mind stiffened. I braced for impending impact, almost certain of its trajectory. And suddenly, what I knew, was not what I knew. Tom's fear and his inability to change the outcome of even his own life paralyzes the reader.

The bleak and muted English countryside enraptured me. Even though I've never been to the United Kingdom, Stuart conjures a middle class moroseness that I'm all too familiar with here in the States. I enjoyed the subtle, stifled elements of the world. There is a realness and depth that is unnerving.

In literature and film, victims of sexual abuse are too often painted as helpless and subdued, call it the "lifetime movie effect." Here, Jessica presents as a strong character, and even appears to instigate sexual encounters with her father. While it is clear Jessica is the victim of sexual abuse, The War Zone paints in shades of grey. In an unflinchingly real look at sexual abuse, the reader is left with a conflicted view of the `relationship' - Does Jessica truly believe she is having sex with her father of her own volition? Or is she so emotionally damaged that her only way to cope with this terrible abuse is to somehow to claim it as her own?

As I read, I was reminded of my first read of Anthony Burgess` A Clockwork Orange. A book in which the most utterly taboo things were explored in an equally unflinching light. As a younger reader I was shocked and delighted at the shifts and turns it offered. Like The War Zone; Clockwork haunted me long after I set it down.

For me, this was a deeply personal book. Some may ask "how could you enjoy something with such a horrid subject matter?" I'm not sure I have an exact answer to that. There is nothing 'feel good' about it. And yet, I found it captivating and meaningful. The War Zone has found a permanent place on my bookshelf.

I feel the author missed his chance to explore the subject of incest from the child's perspective.While casting most of the blame on the child; it never explains the WHY. I feel the novel was exploitive and needn't have been; since the subject itself always is. There was a lack of clarity in regard to the child's motivation in manipulating the people closest to her in such a perverse way. The book left alot of unanswered questions and I had an overall feeling of sadness after reading it. The child was again victimized; only this time by the author.

The Book draws you into a scenario where a family seems to be functioning with the usual teenage angst among other things. The fact that the father is committing incest with is his daughter draws the teen son into the mix.
While I won't tell how the book ends, it ends badly making me wonder about the purpose of this book. It can be viewed as salacious or thought provoking.
Incest is a mean disturbing crime that attacks the very basis of a persons view toward normal life. I don't see this book as a compelling force toward any way to effectively deal with it.
BE VERY READY FOR A DISTURBINGLY GRAPHIC READ WITH DETAILED SEXUAL SCENES WRITTEN TOWARD A TEENAGE READER.