The Hummingbird War

by Joan Shott

Beginning as an account of bereavement told by a 19-year old war widow, The Hummingbird War soars into a tale of the ultimate price paid by soldiers, their families, and the deeply-divided nation during the Vietnam War. Amid the tumultuous year of 1968, Diane Hayes tells the story of how she risked everything to end the war - the war overseas, the war at home, and the war within her heart. After her Navy pilot husband’s jet is shot down, shy and deferential Diane moves from her island home to attend college. When she takes a job for the university’s SDS chapter, she discovers more than political unrest in her heart and she is forced to choose between a past she does not want to abandon and an uncertain future.

Genres: Fiction

268 pages, Paperback

First published November 22, 2011

Reviews

[Mimi]

I read this self-published novel for Book Club, and sadly it reads like a self-published novel. The storyline, while sweet and interesting, is hampered by pacing issues and obvious plot twists. There was some dryness to the tone that made it not as quick of a read as it could be. Having said that, it was an interesting story and I was curious to see how it ended.

[Kayleen]

In a time where the news seems dominated by college kids trying to create a new world apart from the one built by their parents' generation, this story harkens back to the late 60s, when 18-20 year olds tried to make sense out of peace, love, and war.

The main character, Diane, (fairly unmemorable) met and married a boy in the moments before he headed to Vietnam as a jet pilot. Before she could even really relate to herself as a wife, she had to learn to relate to herself as a war widow.

This story picks up when she tries to pick herself up and move on. She starts taking college classes, nursing her emotional wounds and hesitantly growing a circle of new friends, while trying to live up the steep expectations of her flag-waving widowed father back home.

She meets her intrusive psyche-student roommate, a frail AA elderly woman with a past of her own, and her new boss, a rich, suave anti-war activist.

Although I didn't particularly like Diane, this book does a fair job of representing the struggles of a young woman being pulled by the voices around her and those within, in a world when no one can agree... on a personal, political or global level.

[Jane]

I wanted to like this book, but sadly was unfulfilled at the end. It takes place in the 60s when I was a teenager myself. I liked the drama revolving around that time with the Vietnam war and anti-war movement. But the plot was too contrived with how the characters all came together. It felt like one of those towns in a soap opera where only about 15 people live who keep running into each other. The main character (whose name I don't even remember and I just finished in yesterday!) was not likable at all to me. I don't want to be a spoiler so if you decide to read it, stop here - but I was very disturbed by her reaction when her husband shows up! Like he was some brutish villain all along! She never spoke bad of him before but when he returns she is suddenly scared of him instead of wanting to help him esp. after all he went through. As if his war experiences had no part in his behavior. She treated him horribly. She just wanted to move on with her life with no compassion for him at all. The first half was slow and honestly I knew very quickly what Lily was up to almost as soon Matthew shows up. It was as if the writer started out with a great idea for a compelling story then lost steam and decided to just wrap it up as quickly as possible. The characters were all very one dimensional. The Dads, the roommates, Lily, Matthew and again, the main character whose name escapes me, not to mention the pathetic mechanic who was smitten by her which she had to tell us over and over every time she goes back home to Daddy. Geez! I get the title but I would have liked her to have had more interaction with her birds instead of just fretting about who would feed them while she was away! Sorry, I don't mean to be mean, but it was not a great read. Needless to say I won't be reading her follow-up. I mean why bother?

[Heather]

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It was just what I needed to read. It was a lovely story about love, loss, and growth. Even though it was set during the Vietnam War, as the wife of a disabled veteran I found some of its lessons could be applied to my life as well. I especially found the idea of "dancing with your heart and your feet" compelling and touching. I'm so glad to have found this book, and now I'm at a loss of what to read next. Thanks for the great read Joan Shott!!! I'd definitely recommend this book to others.

[Julie Hodge]

I really enjoyed this book. The characters come alive and are very well developed. The story line keeps you guessing and trying to put the pieces of the story together. History, romance and the story of growing and moving on with life are all parts of this book. Highly recommend.