Books with category Heroism
Displaying 6 books

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

2012

by Ben Fountain

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk is a razor-sharp satire set in Texas during America's war in Iraq. It explores the gaping national disconnect between the war at home and the war abroad.

Ben Fountain’s remarkable debut novel follows the surviving members of the heroic Bravo Squad through one exhausting stop in their media-intensive "Victory Tour" at Texas Stadium, football mecca of the Dallas Cowboys, their fans, promoters, and cheerleaders.

Nineteen-year-old Billy Lynn is home from Iraq, and he's a hero. Billy and the rest of Bravo Company were filmed defeating Iraqi insurgents in a ferocious firefight. Now, Bravo's three minutes of extreme bravery is a YouTube sensation and the Bush Administration has sent them on a nationwide Victory Tour. During the final hours of the tour, Billy will mix with the rich and powerful, endure the politics and praise of his fellow Americans, and fall in love. He'll face hard truths about life and death, family and friendship, honor and duty. Tomorrow he must go back to war.

Blue Heaven

2010

by C.J. Box

Blue Heaven is a gripping thriller by C.J. Box that unfolds in the stunning landscapes of North Idaho. A twelve-year-old girl, Annie, and her younger brother, William, find themselves on the run in the woods, desperately trying to escape from four men who have just committed a murder. These men, retired cops from Los Angeles, know exactly who William and Annie are and are determined to silence them.


As the siblings navigate the dangers of the wilderness, they encounter Jess Rawlins, an old-school rancher facing foreclosure. Rawlins, recognizing the peril the children are in, becomes their unexpected savior. However, with the killers leading the search for the missing children, trust is a rare commodity in this town transformed by new residents.


Blue Heaven explores themes of greed, community, and the true meaning of family. It's a tale of unlikely heroes standing at the crossroads of duty and courage, where the beauty of the setting is threatened by those who want to exploit it. This novel delivers twists and turns until its last breathtaking page.

Flyboys: A True Story of Courage

Flyboys is a gripping narrative of war, friendship, and honor set against the backdrop of the remote Pacific island of Chichi Jima. Nine American flyers, Navy and Marine pilots tasked with bombing Japanese communications towers, were shot down. This is their story.

One of these men was miraculously rescued by a U.S. Navy submarine, while the others faced capture by Japanese soldiers. The fate of these eight captured men was shrouded in secrecy, buried by both American and Japanese governments.

James D. Bradley takes readers on a journey to uncover the truth, navigating through dusty attics in American towns, classified government archives, and the heart of Japan, ultimately reaching Chichi Jima itself. His findings reveal a mystery stretching back 150 years, to America's westward expansion and Japan's initial encounters with the Western world.

With vivid descriptions, Bradley brings to life the courage and sacrifice of these young men, while also exploring the complex history of two nations at war. He delves into the Japanese warrior mentality and the U.S. military strategies that justified devastating attacks on civilians.

Ultimately, Flyboys is about how we live and die, epitomized by the tale of the one Flyboy who escaped capture—a young Navy pilot named George H. W. Bush, who would later become President of the United States.

This masterpiece of historical narrative will forever change our understanding of the Pacific war and the very principles we fight for.

102 Minutes: The Untold Story of the Fight to Survive Inside the Twin Towers

102 Minutes tells the dramatic and moving account of the struggle for life inside the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11, 2001, when every minute counted.

At 8:46 am, 14,000 people were inside the twin towers—reading e-mails, making trades, eating croissants at Windows on the World. Over the next 102 minutes, each would become part of a drama for the ages, one witnessed only by the people who lived it—until now.

New York Times reporters Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn have taken a revealing approach. Reported from the perspectives of those inside the towers, 102 Minutes captures the little-known stories of ordinary people who took extraordinary steps to save themselves and others.

Dwyer and Flynn rely on hundreds of interviews with rescuers, thousands of pages of oral histories, and countless phone, e-mail, and emergency radio transcripts. They cross a bridge of voices to go inside the infernos, seeing cataclysm and heroism, one person at a time, to tell the affecting, authoritative saga of the men and women—the nearly 12,000 who escaped and the 2,749 who perished—as they made 102 minutes count as never before.

The Natural

2003

by Bernard Malamud

The Natural, Bernard Malamud's first novel, published in 1952, is a classic tale of heroism set in the world of baseball. It tells the story of Roy Hobbs, a superbly gifted "natural" player in the old daylight baseball era, who must navigate the challenges and temptations that life throws his way.

With a hardscrabble poetry that is both grand and believable, Malamud elevates baseball to its ordained place in mythology. The novel captures the passion, craziness, and fanaticism of baseball as a popular spectacle, making it a timeless piece of American literature.

The Cruel Sea

The Cruel Sea is a powerful novel set during World War II, chronicling the harrowing experiences of the British ships Compass Rose and Saltash as they engage in a desperate cat-and-mouse game with Nazi U-boats in the North Atlantic. Originally published in 1951, this classic novel vividly captures the endurance and daring of its characters.

The story is based on the author's own experiences serving in corvettes in the North Atlantic, providing a matter-of-fact yet moving portrayal of ordinary men learning to fight and survive amidst brutal conditions. The narrative spans seven chapters, each depicting a year of the war, offering gripping details of the Battle of the Atlantic and the relentless struggle against both the elements and a ruthless enemy.

The Cruel Sea remains a timeless piece of literature that conveys the raw courage and resilience of those who fought in one of history's most challenging naval battles.

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