1 | [[quoteright:306:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tree_of_smoke.png]] |
2 | -> ''"Young men, while you live," he told them, "find out how to wake up from this nightmare."'' |
3 | |
4 | ''Tree of Smoke'' is an [[MindScrew esoteric]] war novel written by Denis Johnson and first published in 2007, winning the National Book Award for Fiction. It is [[DoorStopper very long]], [[NightmareFuel very nightmarish]], and almost [[RuleOfSymbolism too metaphysical]] for its own good. Despite being advertised as an epic novel about UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar, Johnson's work is about a lot more than just that. |
5 | |
6 | Due to its slow pacing, penchant for [[SeinfeldianConversation low-key dialogue]], and [[SurrealHorror horrifically dreamlike]] atmosphere, the book has become known for being somewhat divisive among readers. There's no single protagonist (although there are several related plot threads), the protagonists are [[AntiHero deeply flawed]] at best and [[BlueAndOrangeMorality downright bizarre]] in their actions and motives at times. |
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8 | The closest thing to a "hero" the book has is Colonel Sands, a retired war hero who leads an operation in Vietnam with the help of the CIA. A bit [[CloudCuckoolander zany]] in his antics, although trust us when we say he's one of the most sane characters in the entire book. |
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10 | Think ''Literature/{{Ulysses}}'' [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] ''Literature/TheThingsTheyCarried''. |
11 | |
12 | !!''Tree of Smoke'' contains examples of the following tropes: |
13 | * AnArmAndALeg: There's a soldier with a leg that got blown off, using crutches to get around. |
14 | * AntiHero: '''Oh yes.''' In an ensemble of troubled protagonists, though, James Houston takes the cake. The Houston family as a whole is [[DysfunctionJunction pretty messed up]], really. |
15 | * AnyoneCanDie: And die they do. Horribly. |
16 | * BlackAndGrayMorality: And it's a fairly dark shade of gray. |
17 | * BlackComedy: Some of the soldiers' antics are this with a healthy dose of [[MindScrew Mind Screw]]. |
18 | * BornLucky: Those who accompany him see Colonel Sands as invincible to an almost-supernatural degree. |
19 | * CloudCuckoolander: Sometimes [[PlayedForLaughs Played For Laughs]], other times for [[SurrealHorror Surreal Horror]]. |
20 | * ColonelKilgore: Sergeant Harmon can come across as this. |
21 | * CoolOldGuy: Colonel Sands served in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, and despite now being a civilian is practically worshiped by his subordinates. |
22 | * DoorStopper: About 700 pages long, depending on the edition. |
23 | * {{Eagleland}}: Definitely a mixture of both types. Skip Sands and the colonel are Type 1, at least at first, while many of the American soldiers are more Type 2. |
24 | * FemalesAreMoreInnocent: Innocence which is then [[BreakTheCutie utterly crushed]], particularly in Kathy Jones's plot thread. |
25 | * MindScrew: When shit gets weird, it gets ''really'' weird. Though considering how James and other characters are either drunk or high (or both) a lot of the time, this isn't too surprising. |
26 | * NightmareFuel: Once our heroes enter Vietnam, things get ''very'' ugly. |
27 | ** If you didn't know about the effects of [[{{Gorn}} white phosphorous]] before, you sure do now. |
28 | * SkewedPriorities: [[SarcasmMode Remember kids]], when you're in the middle of a war zone it's best to get drunk as possible and as often as possible. |
29 | * SociopathicSoldier: Quite a few of them, it seems. |
30 | * SurrealHorror: On top of all the violence and symbolism, some things simply do not make much sense when taken at face value, but that doesn't make them any less unnerving. |
31 | * {{Surrealism}}: Much like ''Literature/TheThingsTheyCarried'', this is a modern example of surrealist literature, although it does come back to Earth every now and again. |
32 | * WorldOfSymbolism: Present throughout, but becomes more apparent in trippy passages. |
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