We Pierce: A Novel [Hardcover]

Andrew Huebner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 22, 2003

"We Pierce" is the story of two brothers: one brother, Smith, goes to war. A true believer, he leads a tank company into battle in Iraq during the Gulf War. There he learns about the true nature of patriotism, camaraderie, modern warfare and, finally, the soldiers' secret that some things learned over there are better not brought back home. Meanwhile Sam, an aspiring writer, as much a rebel as his older brother is a natural leader, is busy protesting against the war in Times Square in New York and on the Capitol steps in Washington, D.C. But he questions the strength of his own beliefs, while losing his own battle with alcohol and narcotics. Both brothers are haunted by the depth of the sacrifice at home incurred by their family's commitment to honor and duty on battlefields abroad.

As he did with his first novel, "American by Blood," acclaimed novelist Andrew Huebner draws on his family's long experience with violence and military service and renders a haunting novel of war. From the desert of Iraq to the Lower East Side of New York, "We Pierce" is about fighting for what you believe in, no matter what the cost to yourself or your brother.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

This novel carries the concept of a roman a clef almost to the point of autobiography. It relates the story of two brothers: one whose sense of duty propels him into the Gulf War as a tank commander, the other whose equally strong sense of his duty to protest war leads him eventually to New York to ultimately fight a war of his own. The surnames of the fictional brothers? Huebner! Smith Huebner endures bad food, desert sandstorms, and life inside a tank for six months. Meanwhile, his brother, Sam, English teacher and war protester, is losing a war with cocaine dependency. Smith, who one might have thought to be imperturbable in his conscientiousness, is ironically chastened in his sense of duty when he sees his good friend Morrison fall in battle and is quick to return home to the safe shield of his wife, his baby, and his South. While alternating the brothers' stories, the author leads naturally to a denouement during Smith's seven-hour stopover in New York on his way home. Allen Weakland
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

The New York Times A spare, forceful novel....[Huebner] is often capable of a terse, angry eloquence that unifies the book's divergent threads....We Pierce is wise and unabashed.

The New York Times Book Review Smart, sharp...We Pierce joins Swofford's Jarhead in attempting to fill a memory hole. It's the story of Smith Huebner who comes from a long line of military men. His great-grandfather fought in the Indian Wars, arriving, as beautifully depicted in Andrew Huebner's first novel American by Blood, a day late for the Battle of Little Big Horn. Read together, his two novels offer a memorable take on the evolution of the American military. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (April 22, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743212770
• ISBN-13: 978-0743212779
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,134,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Finding What You Believe In, May 7, 2003

By 

Richard Wells (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: We Pierce: A Novel (Hardcover)

"We Pierce," is less about fighting for what you believe in than finding what that is in the first place. Two brothers embark on adventures of discovery; one is confronted by all the demons of war, and emerges somehow unaffected - the same character at the end of Gulf War One as at the beginning; the other confronts the demons of self-worth and addiction and though we are left with hope for his recovery, never find out for sure. Both stories are well told, and tie nicely together, and the details of war and addiction coupled with the background of family history work well in giving us a believable picture; but, resolution seems to be missing. Overall, I was left wanting more; either closure, or an indication the story would be continued, rather than the feeling of life just going on. But maybe that was the point. Some people don't change much regardless of what they've been through, in which case I'd have to ask, "So what?" "We Pierce," is a good read, but guardedly recommended because of the lack of closure.

3.0 out of 5 stars A tale of two brothers and their battles, July 22, 2004

By 

Nicholas Carroll (Portland OR United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: We Pierce: A Novel (Paperback)

First of all, I'd give this book 3 1/2 stars, which isn't bad. I wanted to read this novel after having read "Jarhead" and "Baghdad Express", two memoirs about Marines in the first Gulf War. I like that there are books coming out by the soldiers and Marines who fought in the first Gulf War, offering different perspectives on the same topic. This one was written as a novel, though the writer uses his own last name as the same last name for his two main characters, the brothers Smith and Sam Huebner. I'm not certain why he does this, but I found myself wondering how much of it was taken from his own life's experiences.

The most distracting thing I didn't like about the way this book was written was the lack of quotation marks to indicate speech. This was hard to get used to at first, but I caught on, although in a few places, it added confusion as to what was spoken by a character and what was only a thought. I'm not sure why he would forgo the use of quotation marks, unless it was for some literary device, but again, I thought it added to unnecessary confusion.

The tale of the two brothers was an interesting juxtaposition. I preferred reading about Smith Huebner and his experiences at war, though it didn't seem to amount to much. His brother, Sam, who aspired to be a Kerouac-style writer but got lost in drug addiction, was the heartbreaking half of the book. As I read, I couldn't believe that someone would destroy the potentiality of his own life in pursuit of the next high. I enjoyed seeing a glimpse into the life of a drug addict and how powerless they are to change, even if they intend to change, after their "final high." No jail time or ultimatum from a girlfriend seemed strong enough to convince Sam to change his ways.

The novel ends a little too abruptly for me, with Smith returning to his pre-war life and his brother in search of the next high. There wasn't any resolution to the story, no profound meaning or awakening. It just is. A sort of "year in the life of two brothers" portrait. It is well written overall and a good cautionary tale against drug usage, but beyond that, it doesn't offer a whole lot to ponder on. I didn't know what the title referred to. Before I read it, I thought it was about two brothers with the last name "Pierce." I didn't expect the writer to use his own last name for the characters.

Anyone interested in novels about our soldiers in the Gulf War should read this, along with the memoirs "Baghdad Express" (Turnipseed) and "Jarhead" (Swofford). Out of those three, I think "Jarhead" is the best, followed by this one. But "the Great American Gulf War novel" remains to be written.