Northern Lights (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Wide awake and restless, Paul Milton Perry clawed away the sheets and swung out of bed, blood weak, his fists clenching and closing like a..." (more)
Key Phrases: orange rucksack, miserable parade, snow sobbed, Jud Harmor, Sawmill Landing, Pliney's Pond (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The suspense is spellbinding.. . . What puts this tale above countless others is the care and eloquence of Tim O'Brien."
--Chicago Sun-Times

"Northern Lights is a thrilling story . . . which can be read and enjoyed simply as an adventure story, but digs deeper than that."
--Irish Times

"Gripping and convincing. . . . Northern Lights is an impressive         rst novel."
--Times Literary Supplement

"O'Brien writes superbly, he also has a wonderful ear for ordinary American idiom and the ability to         ne-tune its innate rhythms, cadences, and imagery into an authentic popular poetry."
--The Guardian

"Haunting. . . . Survival, courage, and heroes are examined beautifully and simply."
--Publishers Weekly -- Review

Review

"The suspense is spellbinding.. . . What puts this tale above countless others is the care and eloquence of Tim O'Brien."
--Chicago Sun-Times

"Northern Lights is a thrilling story . . . which can be read and enjoyed simply as an adventure story, but digs deeper than that."
--Irish Times

"Gripping and convincing. . . . Northern Lights is an impressive         rst novel."
--Times Literary Supplement

"O'Brien writes superbly, he also has a wonderful ear for ordinary American idiom and the ability to         ne-tune its innate rhythms, cadences, and imagery into an authentic popular poetry."
--The Guardian

"Haunting. . . . Survival, courage, and heroes are examined beautifully and simply."
--Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Broadway (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767904419
• ISBN-13: 978-0767904414
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #84,640 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 really, but read what i have to say, October 1, 2005

By	lisatheratgirl "lisatheratgirl" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Northern Lights (Paperback)

Tim O'Brien is an award-winning writer and I have really enjoyed some of his other novels. This is his first, written in 1975. I recommend reading Tim O'Brien, but don't start with this one. You may get turned off early and miss out on something really good. After slogging through the first half of this book, I almost pitched it. Nothing happens, even when there is a big buildup to make you think something is finally going to happen. The writing style is poor. There is endless repitition, uninspired description "It was very hot," bad grammar and other irritants.
THEN, I read the second half and was plunged into an action-adventure-survival drama with two brothers fighting for their lives in a whited-out northern Minnesota forest in January. The style didn't improve, but I didn't care. In many ways this book seemed to me the forerunner of his bestseller In the Lake of the Woods, which I highly recommend. Don't pass this one by, either. Skip or skim the first part if you feel the way I did. He gets a lot better as he goes along.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good debut novel, December 19, 2002

By	ChiefSanch "sancho28" (New Hartford, New York United States) - See all my reviews

Excellent debut novel, but Tim O'Brien only got better. All of his tension and emotion in present in this novel, but he still had yet to develope his style and language that has made him, in my opinion, one of America's best writers today.

It's a story about privacy. Private lives at home and secret romances of sorts and the return of a Vietnam vet who has a constant reminder of his time In Country, but he never tells the secret of how he received the injury to his ear.

It's an excellent debut novel, but don't be discouraged if this is the first Tim O'Brien novel you read, he only get's better. I give it my highest recommendation.

It's adventurous and tense when the brothers are lost in the woods. O'Brien paints an impressive picture of the Minnesota woods when these brothers travel at the feet of these enormous snow covered trees in awe and reverence of nature.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars not O'Brien's best, but great nonetheless, October 28, 1999

By A Customer

A fascinating look at the complex relationship between two brothers, one of whom fought in Vietnam, Northern Lights also examines other issues. I enjoyed this book a lot, but O'Brien's other works are better. After all, this *was* his first published novel. In fact, O'Brien himself has said that he wishes he should have made intense revisions to this book. Regardless, read Northern Lights only after you have read O'Brien's other books. I am a true O'Brien fan who has read ALL of his books, and I DID enjoy this book. But save it for after you have learned to appreciate O'Brien and his literary style.