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Sebastian Junger

Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging Hardcover – International Edition, May 24, 2016

by Sebastian Junger (Author)

4,673 ratings

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Sebastian Junger, the bestselling author of War and The Perfect Storm, takes a critical look at post-traumatic stress disorder and the many challenges today’s returning veterans face in modern society.

There are ancient tribal human behaviors-loyalty, inter-reliance, cooperation-that flare up in communities during times of turmoil and suffering. These are the very same behaviors that typify good soldiering and foster a sense of belonging among troops, whether they’re fighting on the front lines or engaged in non-combat activities away from the action. Drawing from history, psychology, and anthropology, bestselling author Sebastian Junger shows us just how at odds the structure of modern society is with our tribal instincts, arguing that the difficulties many veterans face upon returning home from war do not stem entirely from the trauma they’ve suffered, but also from the individualist societies they must reintegrate into.

A 2011 study by the Canadian Forces and Statistics Canada reveals that 78 percent of military suicides from 1972 to the end of 2006 involved veterans. Though these numbers present an implicit call to action, the government is only just taking steps now to address the problems veterans face when they return home. But can the government ever truly eliminate the challenges faced by returning veterans? Or is the problem deeper, woven into the very fabric of our modern existence? Perhaps our circumstances are not so bleak, and simply understanding that beneath our modern guises we all belong to one tribe or another would help us face not just the problems of our nation but of our individual lives as well.

Well-researched and compellingly written, this timely look at how veterans react to coming home will reconceive our approach to veteran’s affairs and help us to repair our current social dynamic.

Print length

192 pages
Language

English
Publisher

HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date

May 24, 2016
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.73 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

144344958X
ISBN-13

978-1443449588
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Popular Highlights in this book

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The findings are in keeping with something called self-determination theory, which holds that human beings need three basic things in order to be content: they need to feel competent at what they do; they need to feel authentic in their lives; and they need to feel connected to others.
8,922 Kindle readers highlighted this
Humans don't mind hardship, in fact they thrive on it; what they mind is not feeling necessary. Modern society has perfected the art of making people not feel necessary.
5,093 Kindle readers highlighted this
The beauty and the tragedy of the modern world is that it eliminates many situations that require people to demonstrate a commitment to the collective good.
4,055 Kindle readers highlighted this

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Junger has raised one of the most provocative ideas of this campaign season-and accidentally written one of its most intriguing political books.” (New York Times)

“There are three excellent reasons to read Sebastian Junger’s new book: the clarity of his thought, the elegance of his prose, and the provocativeness of his chosen subject. Within a compact space, the sheer range of his inquiry is astounding.” (S. C. Gwynne, New York Times bestselling author of Rebel Yell and Empire of the Summer Moon)

“Junger uses every word in this slim volume to make a passionate, compelling case for a more egalitarian society.” (Booklist)

“Thought-provoking. . . . A gem.” (The Washington Post)

“TRIBE is an important wake-up call. Let’s hope we don’t sleep through the alarm.” (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

“Compelling. . . . Junger . . . offers a starting point for mending some of the toxic divisiveness rampant in our current political and cultural climate.” (The Boston Globe)

“Junger argues with candor and grace for the everlasting remedies of community and connectedness.” (O, the Oprah Magazine)

“TRIBE is a fascinating, eloquent and thought-provoking book . . . packed with ideas. . . . It could help us to think more deeply about how to help men and women battered by war to find a new purpose in peace.” (Times (London))

About the Author

Sebastian Junger is the New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Storm, A Death in Belmont and Fire. He is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair, and has been awarded a National Magazine Award and an SAIS Novartis Prize for journalism. He lives in New York City.

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins Publishers (May 24, 2016)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 144344958X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1443449588
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.73 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,350,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2,134 in Iraq War History (Books)
- #3,910 in Violence in Society (Books)
- #3,971 in Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Customer Reviews:
4,673 ratings

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Sebastian Junger

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Sebastian Junger is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of War, The Perfect Storm, Fire, and A Death in Belmont. Together with Tim Hetherington, he directed the Academy Award-nominated film Restrepo, which won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. He is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and has been awarded a National Magazine Award and an SAIS Novartis Prize for journalism. He lives in New York City.

Customer reviews

5 star		76%
4 star		15%
3 star		6%
2 star		2%
1 star		2%

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Dave Murray

Answered a question from long ago

Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2017

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I have long wondered why when it was time for me to return to America from Vietnam I was apprehensive, perhaps even a bit frightened. Mr. Junger answered my question. I left my tribe.

Now, years later, a libertarian-conservative, I had even allowed myself to hold the political left in contempt. This book shames me and I suspect that in that regard the book will even affect change in me.

I'm supposed to be writing about this book, not myself, but for me the book was not just interesting and informative. It opened up something long suppressed and I am grateful.

If you are a vet you should read it. If you are so highly partisan that you regard those other guys as evil, please read it.

It's not just a good book.

400 people found this helpful

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Phil

We're All Dead Inside

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2016

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Upon reading Junger’s article in a recent Vanity Fair article on the affects of PTSD (it’s not exclusive to just war veterans, by the way), I was under the assumption that a large portion of this book would be dedicated to that. I was wrong. Sebastian dove much deeper than that.

Tribe focuses on the growing disconnect we’re experiencing with one another as a society, and the far reaching consequences of that disconnect. It’s an eye-opening letter to the American public that politely reminds us that we’ve lost our way when it comes to being a closer knit community as a whole.

Not always, of course. In his book, he touches on how tragedies such as 9/11 brings us closer - albeit briefly. But once the dust settles, we fall back to our old ways.

This is not a book about war, the military, or PTSD. It’s about the loss of belonging, caring for our fellow man as we do about the ones closest to us. He uses a parable about a brief encounter he has with a homeless man as a young adult. The man sees that he’s on a backpacking trip on his own and asks if he has enough food for his trip. The young Junger, afraid of being mugged for his supplies, lies and tells the man that he has just a little food to last him. The homeless man tells Junger he’ll never make it on what he has and hands him his lunch bag that he more than likely received from a homeless shelter - probably the only meal the homeless man would have the entire day. Sebastian feels horrible about himself after that, but uses that lesson as a parable for Tribe.

Think of your fellow man before thinking of yourself. Because without that sense of humanism, togetherness, belonging, we’re all dead inside.

464 people found this helpful

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K. fanelly

This was one of the worst books I have ever read

Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2019

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Junger is attempting to make a point that humanity needs war or natural disasters to feel a sense of community or purpose. To make this point, he disparages the remarkable civilization of the American Indians by continually referring to their existence as "stoneage" and "war-like". Those people lived on their lands for thousands of years coexisting and warring only on occasion. He opens by taking food from a homeless man and hoarding his own. Then argues that he made the man feel good. I spent most of the time reading this book feeling downright icky. I and my fellow book club readers all felt the same after reading this self-centered, ego driven, uninformed, loosely documented attempt at a point.

37 people found this helpful

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B W from Pa.

Should be required reading in history classes, and is small enough to fling at politicians along the campaign trail

Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2016

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Several years ago during the height of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, I had a "discussion" with my brother. He said he was willing to pay his taxes to support the wars, this being the extent of his commitment.

He has three sons, all eligible to serve in the military, none of them having done so, and neither had he.

Many years hence, following North Korea's hack of Sony, my same brother implied we should go to war against Korea and not bother with Obama's
proportional approach. I reminded him we have 25-30,000 troops along the border there, and he seemed to not care.

Then I asked him if he was going to encourage any of his boys to enlist and take up arms. He emphatically told me there were plenty of people willing to go fight. That, of course, didn't answer my question, but he knew he slipped it and I simply stopped speaking to him.

What my brother was willing to do was finance the fighting. He had no intention of paying the true costs of what he advocated.

Mr. Junger's book explains why this type of attitude is so harmful to those who fight our wars and return home to a population so far removed from the wars and the troops that it affects their assimilation into the society they left, and causes us to treat them as victims instead of soldiers, and why it's never enough or even wise to simply say: "thank you for your service".

Because we limit our war exposure to so small a percentage of our citizens, men and women return home to a country completely removed from any type of knowledge of the brotherhood of soldiers, the cohesive units that draw men and women close and unites them. And it isn't just the soldiers exposed to battle that feel the effects and suffer from high rates of PTSD for longer periods because they reenter a country suddenly foreign to them. Civilians go through the same ordeal. And it occurs in America at far higher rates than other countries involved in war.

I thought this was a great read. I highly recommend it. I'm glad it made the NYT bestseller's list. Maybe people will start paying attention.

Sebastian has the bona fides to cover a topic such as this. We'd be wise to listen to what he has to say.

167 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Adam de Beausoleil

Highly recommended

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 5, 2017

Verified Purchase

I read this after hearing the author on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Although short, this book is packed with interesting stories, insights, and perspectives. By the end, I felt it had opened up as many questions as answered them. This is a very good thing though - the book is thought provoking and will have you seeing the modern world through fresh eyes.

If you have liked books by Robert Wright, Steven Pinker, Jonathan Haidt, or Jared Diamond, you will like this.

20 people found this helpful

Kieran McLoughlin

Solid book with an interesting topic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 29, 2020

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Having read 'War', I was looking forward to seeing where Sebastian went with this. Overall, it's a really interesting book that highlights the importance of community and the damaging effects our current state of living is having in alienating individuals and separating us further from each other. We treat our neighbours more like strangers every day, but we all share the same world. In this sense, perhaps we need to regain that sense of family.

2 people found this helpful

Amazon Customer

So much food for thought

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 1, 2021

Verified Purchase

I heard about this book on a podcast and got intrigued. Read it in one sitting and I’m grateful for the book darts I now use to mark up sections in the book I know I’ll revisit again. A must read for everyone - especially poignant for the times we live in.

Yaffle

Fantastic read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 6, 2018

Verified Purchase

Junger explores an interesting angle of the human reactions to war and the effects tribalism. Done in a great unbias journalistic style, that highlight the facts and explore how societies effect and influence people suffering trauma, and how the idea of a tribe mentality fits into it all. A truly great read written with the right balance of fact and compassion when dealing with delicate subjects.

2 people found this helpful

Al

Inspiring and well reasoned thesis.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 9, 2020

Verified Purchase

I did not know what to expect. I was delighted to have found literary gold. This work is both personal and soundly evidenced and a well structured narrative. Full of compassion, it made me stop and reappraise some of my own assumptions. Honestly a sheer delight to read.

The negative is it's brevity;I wanted it to carry on.

2 people found this helpful

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