Soldier's Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point

If you're looking for a book that is purely entertaining, this wouldn't be your choice, no. The complexity of the topic of teaching literature in a military academy would be a hard enough sell, and the topic of teaching it to soldiers who are about to go lead other people into war is likewise weighty. It's also emotional laden inherently, and if Samet errs on the side of being analytical rather than overtly emotional, one can hardly blame her. She's got a hard job in teaching these people and then watching them walk off into the unknown, after all. The writing situation she walks into herself isn't a picnic either, since she's trying to apolitically discuss something that is at its core about politics and patriotism and what it means to serve one's country and serve it right and well. That said, the book is a bit dense in terms of the range of war and military centered texts it references to make its various points. You'll learn military history, philosophy, politics, and the workings of West Point. You'll also learn a lot about human character and resilience in the face of duty, and get a good sense of the people who are choosing to enter a life of military leadership and service in these difficult times. All in all, you'll be given the information you need to come to your own understanding of the role of literature in even this world that seems--but is not--very much removed from the world of art. Highly recommended if you're not looking for a light read about war. If there is such a thing.

Elizabeth Samet's book contains brilliant, honest insights about the value of public service and the lives of cadets and recent graduates of the Military Academy. Far from those trite treatises that tout the "academy way" and borrow their credibility from West Point, her book is truly original and contributes to West Point's image and history. Her writing is elegant. I teach at West Point and have published myself, but more often than not I choose Samet's book when I want a gift for a friend or colleague. A great, inspirational read.

I read a review of this in the NYT and was fascinated by the concept. I have taught courses with military officers but didn't really have any insight into this parallel universe until I did. This is an absolutely marvellous, hopeful book that should destroy many stereotypes: that the military is an unthinking monolith, that military officers are blind to the tragic ambiguities of war and peace, and that literature is some soft option that has little to say about the world. Interestingly, this is the first book about teaching literature I have read that did not mire itself in the fashionable nonsense of much literary theory, though a dash of Terry Eagleton would not have gone amiss. Above all this is a book about moral and intellectual growth: both of our writer/protagonist and of her pupils. The sense we get of her capabilities are all in her lightness of touch and her ability to weave interesting strands together. I read the book almost at one sitting and will go back for more. I have recommended it to all my friends who teach in any capacity: if you can teach this to this audience....And of course the cadets teach us as much as the teacher. There is hope beyond the 'know nothing' Neo Cons and it is from the grass roots of the officer corps. But she tells of dangers too as the political and religious fanaticism of some officers endangers the nature of the military. A democracy needs its officer corps to represent the whole society; not some self selected political or religious faction. There are some candidates for 'Seven Days in May' type players, but not it seems amongst her students. Poetry takes on a very powerful role in the West Point education system and we can only wish it played a similar role in the wider university system. Poetry is above all else a good antidote to fanaticism and glorification of war. Reading this book reminded me of my father in laws tales of war in North Africa in WW2 and the intense hunger for literature that he never experienced again in such mass form. This seems to be alive and well in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A few weeks ago this author was on my local NPR station and I was intrigued by the idea of her book and then I got out of my car and walked into a book store and there it was on the new arrivals pile. I'm not sure if I would have noticed it if not for the story on the radio but I'm glad I did. As a former Army officer who has dealt with some of the issues in this book I was pulled in by her stories of teaching at West Point, an institution I did not attend but have visited and those visits made her descriptions that much more palpable. This book will be a jumping off point to explore more of the references the author describes. I rarely find books that I can't put down but this was one of them.

Elizabeth Samet is a civilian professor of English at West Point. The increase in the number of civilians teaching there was one of the innovations of Fletcher Lamkin, during his term as the WP dean of the academic board. When I taught there, as a reserve officer, in 1967-9 there was only one civilian instructor in English, a woman who taught the plastic arts. Dr. Samet is a Yale Ph.D. and her (to some, curious) career choice of a position at West Point is one of the many stories which constitute this book. She is able to accomplish several things here. She provides a vivid sense of the WP ethos, along with the `newer' ethos which includes women cadets, civilian professors, majors, minors, and a rich array of electives. She provides sketches and portraits of a number of her students and a number of her military colleagues. She reports on their communications with her as they move on in their careers, to and from war zones and, for some, to civilian life. The book is a mini-memoir and mini-autobiography. Most of all it is a long reflection on the relationship between literature and life, literature and the military, literature and war. What is most impressive about the book is the fact that it is so accessible. Its materials are complex but they are presented in a manner that is instructive, moving and compelling. This is a book for everyone interested in literature, for everyone interested in soldiers and for everyone interested in West Point. I recommend it highly.