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An extraordinary novel that takes up a topic rare in American fiction: the first Gulf War and the tragic aftermath of Gulf War illness.
Teaching Guide
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When You Come Home
by Nora Eisenberg
"In her new novel, When You Come Home, Nora Eisenberg uses her estimable talent to explore the human cost of modern war. And thanks to that talent, her book is not only timely but timeless. It deserves a wide readership in this difficult age"--
Robert Olen Butler
(View all blurbs.)
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It's 1991 and marine reservist Anthony Bravo returns from the first Gulf War to the waiting arms of Lily Engels, the feisty orphan raised in his home. As their childhood affection flames into passionate love, Tony rejoices that war is behind him. But soon his buddies begin to suffer fevers and odd symptoms. Gulf War illness--a cluster of diseases attacking most every bodily system--swoops down, imperiling the young lovers' dreams and prospects. As Tony contends with these new battles, shadowy memories of the Gulf advance from the margins of his mind. Readers will be shocked--and haunted--by what Tony discovers in the gripping conclusion of this groundbreaking novel.
Ultimately, When You Come Home demonstrates how war devastates not only losers but winners, resounding with meaning as we consider not only our past, but our present and future. Eisenberg's masterful weaving of public and personal life, of tragedy and comedy, affects as it informs, and delights even as it deeply disturbs.
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