An harrowing insight into the lingering effects of the Vietnam War on its veterans, revealed through a father-daughter relationship. Her father's wartime experiences still haunt him, and Trussoni explores the effect this had on their lives together as she tries to understand why 'the war inside his head' will never be over.
From her father, Danielle Trussoni learned the importance of rock and roll, how to avoid the cops and never to shy away from a fight. Growing up, she was fascinated by the stories he told of his adventures as a tunnel rat in Vietnam, where he risked his life crawling head-first into holes to search for American POW's held underground. Ultimately, Danielle came to realize that when the man she adored drank too much, beat up strangers or mistreated her mother, it was because the war inside his head would never be over. And eventually, when her mother and siblings walked away and washed their hands of Dan Trussoni, Danielle did not.
As Danielle trails her father through nights of drinking, scores of wild girlfriends and years of bad dreams, a vivid and poignant portrait of a father-daughter relationship emerges. Theirs is a love story filled with anger, stubbornness, outrageous behaviour and battle scars that never completely heal.
'Trussoni has taken an extended trip to hell and come back with treasures from that drunken, burning, broken place. She writes of the effects of war without a hint of self-pity, with surprising humour, disarming candor, a hard-won wisdom and with uncannily sure-footed prose. Even if this book were not urgently important and devastatingly timely, I'd still urge you to read it for the sheer triumph of the author's gift' Alexandra Fuller, author of Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight
'A salient and timely reminder that a war's victims aren't limited to those in uniform nor demarcated by geography. This is an important and harrowing story' Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead
Author
About Danielle Trussoni
Danielle Trussoni grew up in La Crosse, Wisconsin and attended the University of Wisconsin and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. After spending time in Japan and Bulgaria, Danielle now lives in Providence, Rhode Island with her husband and children.
