Buffalo Afternoon

by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer

Book Overview

"Remarkable . . . The entire Vietnam experience [in] one epic narrative." The New York Times Book Review For Pete Bravado, the war begins with home and family in Brooklyn: his grandfather's broken dreams, his father's ice-hard heart, his mother's tragic affection, and his own disillusionment and delinquency. Raised against the grain of his true nature, Pete seeks escape in the army -- but instead of finding freedom, he finds a madness in himself that...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0394571789
• ISBN13: 9780394571782
• Release Date: May 1989
• Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
• Length: 535 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A "Vietnam book" for both men and women

Susan Fromberg Schaeffer's Buffalo Afternoon tells the story of a young man's journey from his urban ethnic neighborhood to the jungles of Vietnam and back. Unlike many popular works of fiction about the era, this book does not solely concentrate on the "blood and guts" either during the war or afterwards. It also explores the hero's complex relationships with his wife, family, and other Vietnam Vets. The men who actually served are not the only victims of this war - the wife suffers the effects of her husband's PTSD, and later, when he finally connects to other veterans, has to tolerate homeless or drug addicted or just plain strange "brothers" invading her home at all hours of the day and night, eating the food, drinking the beer, and throwing things at the TV set when the news stories displease them. Required reading for all vets, all vets families, and all vets friends