Saturday, September 10, 2011

Sunday Salon - Books and 9/11

It was within the first year of the attack on the WTC that I read a book that made the attacks real and hit home on a more personal basis.  There was something about Firehouse by David Halberstam that was different.  Not only was it a more personal look at 9/11, it was probably the most emotional that I read.    I think what struck me about the book was the insight that Halberstam had in writing the book and just the eeriness about reading about individuals who perished while doing their job.

I didn't read much on the subject, probably because I wanted to distance myself from the worry and confusion and anxiety and helplessness that I felt that day, but probably more because I honestly just wanted to forget the images of that day and the chilling nightmare I had while driving home one night from a class (I imagined a plane crashed in front of me while I drove home; not something you want to dream about while driving on a dark highway).  I probably also don't read much on the subject for the simple fact that the horror we all witnessed and that can never be changed.

No reviews this week.

5 comments:

Mrs. Melissa said...

I'm the opposite of you; I've watched alot of TV on the rebuilding and checked out 4 books total on 9/11 - two from NatGeo and two memoirs. It sounds crazy, but I'd never heard of the World Trade Center before 9/11. I've learned alot about the buildings that were there as well as the personal stories from the victims. Still haven't had the nerve to watch any of the movies yet.

Anonymous said...

I love Halberstam, but haven't read this one. I'll have to look for it now...and I'll have to tell my wife who is a volunteer firefighter and EMT. I'm sure she'd be interested as well.

Nice post, by the way. Short and to the point.

Julie Goucher said...

Nice post. Like Mrs Melissa, I had the radio on in the car & Sky News once home on the TV. (I am a news addict in general) I have not read the book you mentioned, & have posted details I have read on the subject to the Anglers Rest blog.

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

I remember being fascinated with the images in the beginning, but then when they kept showing them over and over and over...it felt torturous. And sadistic of the TV programmers.

I don't think we need to be hit with it over the head again and again...and I hope they don't do more of that today!

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Deb Nance at Readerbuzz said...

Everyone mourns in a different way. I'm one who reads to accept and to mourn. For me, the best book I read was Incredibly Loud. Very emotional, but cathartic.

Here's my whine...that is, uh, post for the week: Slogging Through with a Behemoth Cold.

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