Whistle (Delta World War II Library) [Paperback]

James Jones (Author)

Book Description

Series: Delta World War II Library | Publication Date: June 8, 1999

The third novel in Jones’s classic World War II trilogy: a moving story of four World War II infantrymen coping with the difficulties of recovering at an army hospital and learning to readjust to the home front At the end of a long journey across the Pacific, a ship catches sight of California. On board are hundreds of injured soldiers, survivors of the American infantry’s battle to wrest the South Seas from the Japanese Empire. As the men on deck cheer their imminent return to their families, wives, and favorite girls, four stay below, unable to join in the celebration. These men are broken by war and haunted by what they learned there of the savagery of mankind. As they convalesce in a hospital in Memphis, the pain of that knowledge will torment them far worse than any wound. The third of James Jones’s epics based on his life in the army, this posthumously published novel draws on his own experiences to depict the horrors of war and their persistence even after the jungle is left behind. “Jones was a powerful naturalistic chronicler of certain essential realities of warfare and of the responses of men at war.” —The New York Times Book Review “Few men write as effectively about the American army as James Jones.” —Newsweek “The only one of my contemporaries who I felt had more talent than myself was James Jones. And he has also been the only writer of any time for whom I felt any love.” —Norman Mailer James Jones (1921–1977) was one of the most accomplished American authors of the World War II generation. He served in the U.S. Army from 1939 to 1944, and was present at the attack on Pearl Harbor as well as the battle for Guadalcanal, where he was decorated with a purple heart and bronze star. Jones’s experiences informed his epic novels From Here to Eternity and The Thin Red Line. His other works include Some Came Running, The Pistol, Go to the Widow-Maker, The Ice-Cream Headache and Other Stories, The Merry Month of May, A Touch of Danger, Whistle, and To the End of the War—a book of previously unpublished fiction.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Jones was a powerful naturalistic chronicler of certain essential realities of warfare and of the responses of men at war.” —The New York Times Book Review

 

“Few men write as effectively about the American army as James Jones.” —Newsweek

 

“The only one of my contemporaries who I felt had more talent than myself was James Jones. And he has also been the only writer of any time for whom I felt any love.” —Norman Mailer

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Delta (June 8, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385334249
• ISBN-13: 978-0385334242
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.2 x 8.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #150,225 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A sober and telling end of a classic series, April 2, 2000

By 

Thomas Stamper (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Whistle (Delta World War II Library) (Paperback)

After having read FROM HERE TO ETERNITY and THE THIN RED LINE, I couldn't figure out what would be so interesting about an army war hospital(the setting for WHISTLE). I was dead wrong proving once again that a great writer makes anything interesting.

The guys are back from Gradualcanal and suffering both physical and psychological effects. They are happy to be alive and ashamed they didn't die along side their buddies. It's hard to believe that so many people they meet know nothing about the war being fought out there. They believe in the other men from their old company, but little else.

It could be argued that it is the weakest of the trilogy. Jones hurried to write the book before his early death at age 55. It was published more than 20 years after the war's end and suffers somewhat from the knowledge of those 20 years. The references to the songs seem more nostalgic than informative. His analysis of the sexes would have been brilliant in 1946, but easily made in the 1970s. But those are minor points, because the book is every bit as honest as gritty as anything that he ever wrote. Good enough that you don't want it to end, but harsh enough that you're afraid to read it a second time.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not his best, but good enough, July 16, 2001

By 

Kenneth Blum (Orrville, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Whistle (Delta World War II Library) (Paperback)

No author captures the mind and plight of the ordinary soldier better than James Jones, and "Whistle" is the third book of a trilogy that includes the indomitable "From Here to Eternity" and the gritty "The Thin Red Line."

From Here to Eternity portrays barracks life in Hawaii just before the attack at Pearl Harbor; The Thin Red Line is a wrenching account of island fighting in the South Pacific; and Whistle is the story of four men from the same infantry company, all wounded in battle, who are brought back to the U.S. on a hospital ship and then sent to an Army hospital in the South.

The book does a fine job of portraying the complex relationships between the four men and the inner demons each has to face. First Sergeant Martin Winch is a cynical, but superb leader who struggles with congestive heart failure while trying his best to protect the other three men. Mess Sgt. Johnny Strange is the nurturer who looks after the others while he struggles with the infidelity of his wife, and the injustices of the Army pecking order. Buck Sergeant Marion Landers tries but fails to handle the monstrous fury that wells up inside him. Corporal Bobby Prell fights to save his legs from amputation and copes with feelings of guilt over a Congressional Medal of Honor that he does not believe he deserves.

This was Jones’ final book, and he was unable to finish the final three chapters before he died of congestive heart failure (his death is portrayed in the movie "A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries" based on the book written by his daughter, Kaylie.)

Unfortunately, the last book of the trilogy doesn’t measure up to the first two, and it pains me to write this because I am one of Jones’ major fans. The story, the writing, Jones’ unique ability to get into the head of the GI just aren’t as sharp in this work.

There is also the matter of his preoccupation about a man performing oral ... on a woman– he goes on and on and on about it throughout the book. The ... is graphic, even by today’s standards. All well and good, but the preoccupation with oral ... stretched and exceeded the limits of its role in the story line. It’s like Jones’ had a statement to make, and he made it too often; and he made it too important for credibility.

And then there is the end of the book, which should have been handled differently. Jones was unable to complete the final three and one half chapters, but he let his intentions for the finale be known in detail. A friend and neighbor, Willie Morris, wrote the last chapters from notes and recordings. They are not written as fiction, but as a summary of what the author intended to happen. The novel would have been much better had a skilled writer done the end as a continuing fictional narrative, imitating Jones’ style. (Of course, there would need to be an appropriate explanation of how it was handled at the beginning of the book.)

Whistle is not James Jones best work. But it’s still a fine story by one of America’s most underrated authors.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Whistle, February 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Whistle (Delta World War II Library) (Paperback)

"Whistle" is one of the best books I have read. WWII is my favorite story genre. James Jones has never been disappointing in showing the reality of the soldiers' character. There were parts of the story where I audibly gasped at what had taken place. Although some of the language was Army technical and foreign to me, it was an easy read. The sexual encounters and explicit descriptions of them, was not offensive,but enlightening. It was very real and a breath of fresh air compared to the sugar coated versions of what happened during the war in other stories and films of the same time period. The main characters, Winch, Landers, Strange and Prell are so different from the stereo-type "war hero" It is a story of WWII which reveals the horror but does not dwell on it with blood, violence & gore and shows it from so many different perspectives.