{"product_id":"9781617036798","title":"Conversations with Tim O'Brien","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn the strength of a National Book Award for his novel \u003ci\u003eGoing After Cacciato\u003c\/i\u003e (1978) and a widely acclaimed short-story cycle, \u003ci\u003eThe Things They Carried\u003c\/i\u003e (1990), Tim O'Brien (b. 1946) cemented his reputation as one of the most compelling chroniclers of Vietnam--and, in the process, was cast as a \"Vietnam writer.\" But to confine O'Brien to a single piece of ground or a particular style is to ignore the broad sweep of a career spanning nearly four decades.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn addition to detailed discussions of all of O'Brien's work--a memoir, \u003ci\u003eIf I Die in a Combat Zone\u003c\/i\u003e (1973), and seven books of fiction--the sixteen interviews and profiles in \u003ci\u003eConversations with Tim O'Brien\u003c\/i\u003e explore common themes, with subtle differences. Looming large is the experience of Vietnam and its influence as well as O'Brien's youth in Minnesota and the expectations of a Midwestern upbringing. Interviews allowed the writer to fully examine the shifting boundaries of truth and identity, memory, and imagination in fiction, the role of war in society; gender issues; and the craft of writing. O'Brien approaches each of these topics and a host of others with a directness and an evident passion that will resonate with both readers and prospective writers. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University Press of Mississippi","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47113468870896,"sku":"9781617036798","price":40.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781617036798_p0.jpg?v=1763852960","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781617036798","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}