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34th out of 168 books
—
37 voters
Falling Through the Earth
One of the New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of the Year
From her charismatic father, Danielle Trussoni learned how to rock and roll, outrun the police, and never shy away from a fight. Spending hour upon hour trailing him around the bars and honky-tonks of La Crosse, Wisconsin, young Danielle grew up fascinated by stories of her dad's adventures as a tunnel rat in...more
From her charismatic father, Danielle Trussoni learned how to rock and roll, outrun the police, and never shy away from a fight. Spending hour upon hour trailing him around the bars and honky-tonks of La Crosse, Wisconsin, young Danielle grew up fascinated by stories of her dad's adventures as a tunnel rat in...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
February 20th 2007
by Picador
(first published 2006)
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Jun 14, 2007
Lisa Rose
marked it as to-read
NEW YORK TIMES BEST 10 BOOKS OF 2006
NONFICTION
FALLING THROUGH THE EARTH
A Memoir.
By Danielle Trussoni. Henry Holt & Company, $23.
This intense, at times searing memoir revisits the author's rough-and-tumble Wisconsin girlhood, spent on the wrong side of the tracks in the company of her father, a Vietnam vet who began his tour as "a cocksure country boy" but returned "wild and haunted," unfit for family life and driven to extremes of philandering, alcoholism and violence. Trussoni mixes these m...more
NONFICTION
FALLING THROUGH THE EARTH
A Memoir.
By Danielle Trussoni. Henry Holt & Company, $23.
This intense, at times searing memoir revisits the author's rough-and-tumble Wisconsin girlhood, spent on the wrong side of the tracks in the company of her father, a Vietnam vet who began his tour as "a cocksure country boy" but returned "wild and haunted," unfit for family life and driven to extremes of philandering, alcoholism and violence. Trussoni mixes these m...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Jun 02, 2008
John
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
award-winner,
non-fiction
The New York Times named this book one of its' Top Ten Books of 2006. Falling Through the Earth is the winner of the Michener-Copernicus Society of America Award for 2005–06. The story is told by the daughter of a Vietnam War veteran and is about his experiences in Vietnam as a "tunnel rat" and how those experiences impacted him and her relationship with her dad. Heartwarming, heartwrenching, and eyeopening. An excellent read for those who really want to understand the impact of the Vietnam War...more
This is a memoir about the author's relationship with her father, a Vietnam vet, who she adored. This is her attempt to come to terms with the impact that the war had on her father, her family and herself. This is a heartbreaking look at a disfunctional family, in fact at one point the sister complains that they are a "Jerry Springer episode".
The father was told to forget about the war and get on with his life so instead of dealing with the damage it caused he shut down and isolated himself from...more
The father was told to forget about the war and get on with his life so instead of dealing with the damage it caused he shut down and isolated himself from...more
I first heard about this book on The Nervous Breakdown when Trussoni posted an excerpt from her book, a memoir. The excerpt was about doing acid and was really funny to me despite having never done it myself. After reading this one passage from her I wanted to see what other mischief she’d gotten into so I went out and got the book, only to find out that it really isn’t about a rebellious teenage existence. It was even better.
The memoir is about growing up in a home tainted by the Vietnam War, w...more
The memoir is about growing up in a home tainted by the Vietnam War, w...more
Falling Through the Earth is a memoir by Danielle Trussoni about her childhood and her relationship with her father. It's the first memoir I've read, which is rather surprising considering I am a fan of biographies.
Ms. Trussoni hails from La Crosse, WI and tells of her childhood growing up as a child of divorce, living with her dad, a Vietnam war vet, and the scars from that war. It's a poignant tale of how some war wounds never heal and how war not only affects those who serve but their familie...more
Ms. Trussoni hails from La Crosse, WI and tells of her childhood growing up as a child of divorce, living with her dad, a Vietnam war vet, and the scars from that war. It's a poignant tale of how some war wounds never heal and how war not only affects those who serve but their familie...more
Dec 16, 2007
Rebecca
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Vietnam war vets, daughters that have strained relationships with their fathers
Shelves:
wickedgoodnon-fiction,
set-in-wi
Set in Wisconsin (which I always love!) Trussoni recounts her difficult relationship with her Vietnam War veteran father. The book weaves together an account of Trussoni's own pilgrimage to Vietnam to understand what happened to her father, as well as narratives from her own childhood. Wonderfully written!
I read this years ago when the hardbound edition first appeared; her editor is a friend of mine, and the book earned glowing reviews. All well-deserved, in this haunting memoir from a young woman whose Vietnam-veteran father took her in after her parents' divorce.
Much of her story revolves around making the best of her messy home life - the father's desire to hang out in bars, either with her in tow or leaving her home alone. She meets the wrong friends, makes the wrong decisions, follows the wr...more
Much of her story revolves around making the best of her messy home life - the father's desire to hang out in bars, either with her in tow or leaving her home alone. She meets the wrong friends, makes the wrong decisions, follows the wr...more
A really powerful memoir about the effects of war on a man and his family, from the perspective of his daughter. I was able to read this book in just a few days, testament to how well it is written, and how powerful and relevant the content is.
This book covers familiar themes - a girl's coming of age, a troubled family, a flawed father, the ravages of war on young men and their families - but does so in a fresh and moving fashion. Told from the point-of-view of the daughter of a rough, damaged Vietnam vet, it is really a story about family, human frailty and failings, regret and some, small degree of redemption. I kept thinking about fissures and lost lives in my own extended family, and helped me have a bit more compassion for flawed...more
Virtually anyone alive during the Vietnam War will acknowledge its impact on American politics and society and, if honest, themselves. Yet as Danielle Trussoni's memoir,
Falling Through the Earth
, demonstrates, there are persons not alive then for whom the war became an intimate part of their lives.[return][return]Trussoni's father, Dan, was a "tunnel rat" in Vietnam. He was among those "two parts stubborn, one part insane" men who ventured into and searched the mazes of tunnels the Viet Cong u...more
This memoir was stupendous! The writing and content were excellent even though it was emotionally draining to read at times. From the get go we know that the author, Danielle, namesake of her father, Daniel, absolutely adores him. {This was reminiscent of Jeannette Walls' relationship with her father in the memoir, 'The Glass Castle'. In fact, Jeannette is quoted recommending this book on the back cover.} During the book we discover that Daniel's time in Vietnam haunts his every action and react...more
The author shares not only her own life's story in this powerful memoir. She shares her father's story, as well, and how his past had a lasting effect on his life and everyone in it. Trussoni's father was a "tunnel rat" during the Vietnam war. The pain and trauma of that experience never left him, and in his own way he inflicted much of the same on his wife and daughters. Trussoni writes with beauty, humor and not one ounce of self-pity about her dysfunctional family and their quest to find peac...more
The narrator's father was a Vietnam veteran. In her autobiographical debut, Ms. Trussoni shares her family's story of children brought up by a man who lived through the horror of war. Her father had been a "tunnel rat" during Vietnam, he explored the extensive tunnels which the Vietnamese had used as living quarters as well as convoys of people, weapons, food and medicine. Few men were willing to enter these tunnels, as the risks included mines and/or ambushes by live soldiers. The narrators fas...more
Somehow I always end up reading graduates of the writer's workshop in Iowa. Truly an incredible story. Probably one of my top five. This is one I couldn't put down! I honestly studied for two hours and then would treat myself to this book it was so good. A story of how a child loves her parent no matter what and how we look at our parents differently as kids than we do as adults. So glad my dad wasn't a Vietnam vet. MUST MUST MUST read.
It jumped around a lot. it took me a few days worth of reading to get used to, and I still wasn't always sure on time periods in some of the chapters and sections. However, as I got closer to the end, I realized how incredible a lot of the stories are. I think it is a must read for any scholars or people living hard lives or with veterans. And it can be eye-opening for the people that are completely against any and all drugs, people like myself, that don't understand why some people start making...more
I read this book probably in 2006 for book club. It was an intense memoir written by a daughter of a Vietnam War veteran. The father served as a tunnel rat. Sad story, and at the time I didn't even know soldiers had to do some of the things this man had to do. For our discussion we had a friend, who was also a Vietnam War veteran, come and talk about his Vietnam experience.
well written...love her descriptive phrases... story is very tough and cause for much reflection on parents passing along to children their own demons.. and how very tough it is to grow up in such situations...what war does to the combatant and to his/her family forever after! 2006 NY Times one of 10 Best Books... amazing what Daniele overcame!
Apr 10, 2011
Wendy Price
added it
Interesting book. I've always thought my childhood was pretty iffy, but I realize that it really wasn't much different from what other folks went through. No, my dad didn't serve in Vietnam, but he and mom had a tough time of it any way. Actually, my childhood wasn't near as bad as Danielle's, but I can definitely relate.
May 09, 2010
Suzanne Hamilton
added it
Wonderful memoir -- Trussoni's childhood scarred by her Vietnam vet father's unacknowledged post-traumatic stress syndrome, interwoven with her father's own experience in the tunnels during the Vietnam War and her own journey made to Saigon as a young woman.
Sep 22, 2008
Ross
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
People who like biographies, people with veterans in their families
Recommended to Ross by:
Amazon "Recommended for You"
Shelves:
biography
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
At first I thought this was too much like Mary Karr or Jeannette Walls. Then I felt the author truly found her own voice and I was riveted to the story. But, the ending just deflated. You know I'm drawn to stories about Vietnam, though, so 3 stars.
Very good. This is not light reading but Trussoni gives a great look into her life as the daughter of a Vietnam veteran. It was also of interest because of the local angle - Trussoni grew up on La Crosse, WI.
This was one I couldn’t put down. The author weaves the painful and captivating story of her father--a Vietnam vet who returns home from the war mentally damaged--and his relationship with his family.
Trussoni’s father was a “tunnel rat” during the war—volunteering for the harrowing job of exploring the vast network of underground chambers built by the Viet Cong. This was, I believe, my first time learning about these tunnels and I was inspired to learn more about this aspect of the war.
Trussoni’s father was a “tunnel rat” during the war—volunteering for the harrowing job of exploring the vast network of underground chambers built by the Viet Cong. This was, I believe, my first time learning about these tunnels and I was inspired to learn more about this aspect of the war.
I really liked this book! It was interesting the whole way through. It did leave some unanswered questions (who was the guy with the sunglasses??), but as it was non-fiction it's not like she was intentionally holding back answers for dramatic effect. It was interesting to get an insider's perspective on how Vietnam impacted someone's family so greatly even though her father made it out alive. Anyways, good book!
Mar 11, 2010
Maryanne
marked it as to-read
I'm mainly interested in this book because it's the first thing I've ever seen that's set in La Crosse, Wisconsin which is where my dad grew up and where much of my Norwegian-sided family still lives....
It is interesting to read a book where you are familiar with the landmarks and community. It makes a personal connection which makes you really want to like the book. I did like this book and appreciate the author who had a very difficult story to tell. Sometimes the story was difficult to follow, but I think that is indicative of Danielle's life growing up and the relationship with her parents.
No one in my book group liked this book, even though it was interesting to learn a bit "first hand" about the "tunnel rats" who dangerously tried to expose and destroy tunnels the Viet Cong used in the Vietnam war. The author, although trying to grapple with the destructive impact Vietnam had on her father and goes there in search of understanding, is not very reflective and a mediocre writer. She does a good job of conveying small town life of the struggling, underclass and we understand why he...more
The title relates to Alice in Wonderland. Wonderful memoir of a daughter traveling to Vietnam to understand her father's postwar PTSD and dysfunctional family. Couldn't put it down.
This was a somewhat dark, interesting read, partly because it was written by a local LaCrosse author, about her life growing up there in the 80's. My husband even read it in a day.
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Trussoni graduated from University of Wisconsin–Madison summa cum laude with a BA in History and English (1996) and the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where she received an MFA in Fiction Writing (2002). Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Telegraph Magazine, The New York Times Book Review and Tin House, among other publications.
Falling Through the Earth: A Memoir was chosen by The New...more
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