Odysseus in America
Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming
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Narrated by:
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David Strathairn
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Max Cleland
About this listen
In this ambitious follow-up to Achilles in Vietnam, Dr. Jonathan Shay uses the Odyssey, the story of a soldier's homecoming, to illuminate the pitfalls that trap many veterans on the road back to civilian life.
Seamlessly combining important psychological work and brilliant literary interpretation with an impassioned plea to renovate American military institutions, Shay deepens our understanding of both the combat veteran's experience and one of the world's greatest classics.
In Achilles in Vietnam, Dr. Jonathan Shay used the story of the Iliad as a prism through which to examine how ancient and modern wars have battered the psychology of the men who fight. Now he turns his attention to the Odyssey, the story of a soldier's homecoming, to illuminate the real problems faced by combat veterans reentering civilian society.
The Odyssey, Shay argues, offers explicit portrayals of behavior common among returning soldiers in our own culture: danger-seeking, womanizing, explosive violence, drug abuse, visitation by the dead, obsession, vagrancy and homelessness. Supporting his reading with examples from his fifteen-year practice treating Vietnam veterans, Shay shows how Odysseus's mistrustfulness, his lies, and his constant need to conceal his thoughts and emotions foreshadow the experiences of many of today's veterans. He also explains how veterans recover and advocates changes to American military practice that will protect future servicemen and servicewomen while increasing their fighting power. Throughout, Homer strengthens our understanding of what a combat veteran must overcome to return to and flourish in civilian life, just as the heartbreaking stories of the veterans Shay treats give us a new understanding of one of the world's greatest classics.
©2002 Jonathan Shay. All rights reserved. Foreword copyright ©2002 by Senator Max Cleland and Senator John McCain. (P)2022 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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- Length: 18 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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On Combat looks at what happens to the human body under the stresses of deadly battle and the impact on the nervous system, heart, breathing, visual and auditory perception, memory - then discusses new research findings as to what measure warriors can take to prevent such debilitations so they can stay in the fight, survive, and win. A brief, but insightful look at history shows the evolution of combat, the development of the physical and psychological leverage that enables humans to kill other humans, followed by an objective examination of domestic violence in America.
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Just what I needed.
- By Jonah on 03-21-17
By: Dave Grossman, and others
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The Gift of Adversity
- The Unexpected Benefits of Life's Difficulties, Setbacks, and Imperfections
- By: Norman E. Rosenthal M.D.
- Narrated by: Erik Synnestvedt
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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The noted research psychiatrist explores how life's disappointments and difficulties provide us with the lessons we need to become better, bigger, and more resilient human beings. Adversity is an irreducible fact of life. Although we can and should learn from all experiences, both positive and negative best-selling author Dr. Norman E. Rosenthal believes that adversity is by far the best teacher most of us will ever encounter.
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Book ruined by the narrator
- By David C. on 12-07-22
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Hannibal and Me
- What History’s Greatest Military Strategist Can Teach Us About Success and Failure
- By: Andreas Kluth
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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The lives of Hannibal and his Roman enemies are the stuff of legend. But these classic stories contain truths with relevance today: The seeds of our successes lie in our failures, and within our successes are the kernels of our failure. Knowing how to recognize these paradoxes will help us to be more effective at work, at school, at home, and with others. A big new idea book that springs from ancient history, Hannibal and Me explores these exciting ideas by analyzing the experiences of Hannibal and others who made their mark on history.
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Wow
- By Berserk on 04-12-12
By: Andreas Kluth
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Worth Dying For
- A Navy Seal's Call to a Nation
- By: Ellis Henican, Rorke Denver
- Narrated by: Rorke Denver
- Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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In a fast-paced and action-packed narrative, Navy SEAL commander Rorke Denver tackles the questions that have emerged about America's past decade at war - from what makes a hero to why we fight and what it does to us. Heroes are not always the guys who jump on grenades. Sometimes, they are the snipers who decide to hold their fire, the wounded operators who find fresh ways to contribute, or the wives who keep the families together back home.
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An Analysis of Recent History
- By Jean on 06-19-16
By: Ellis Henican, and others
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Living the Braveheart Life
- Finding the Courage to Follow Your Heart
- By: Randall Wallace
- Narrated by: Matt Baugher
- Length: 5 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Part autobiography, part master class, Living the Braveheart Life invites us to explore five major archetypes in Braveheart that resonate not only in Randall's life but in the modern-day lives of both men and women: the father, teacher, warrior, sage, and outlaw. Join blockbuster film director Randall Wallace on the journey of his creative and personal life.
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Braveheart has a valable message!
- By Mrs.Bushy on 04-28-21
By: Randall Wallace
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Enduring Vietnam
- An American Generation and Its War
- By: James Wright
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 15 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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The Vietnam War is largely recalled as a mistake, either in the decision to engage there or in the nature of the engagement. Or both. Veterans of the war remain largely anonymous figures, accomplices in the mistake. Critically recounting the steps that led to the war, this book does not excuse the mistakes, but it brings those who served out of the shadows. Enduring Vietnam recounts the experiences of the young Americans who fought in Vietnam and of families who grieved those who did not return.
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Great
- By Rebecca Delgado on 03-20-23
By: James Wright
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Hagakure
- The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai
- By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Alexander Bennett - translator
- Narrated by: Tim Campbell
- Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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The comprehensive and accurate edition of the Hagakure is a must-have for serious martial artists or fans of samurai and the Bushido code.
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awesome book on samurai history.
- By Christian Knight on 10-02-20
By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, and others
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War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning
- By: Chris Hedges
- Narrated by: Chris Hedges
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Drawing on his own experience and on the literature of combat from Homer to Michael Herr, Hedges shows how war seduces not just those on the front lines but entire societies, corrupting politics, destroying culture, and perverting the most basic human desires. Mixing hard-nosed realism with profound moral and philosophical insight, War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning is a work of terrible power and redemptive clarity whose truths have never been more necessary.
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Powerful, perceptive, personal
- By Cx30 on 08-08-07
By: Chris Hedges
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Heroes
- From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de Gaulle
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: James Adams
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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In this enlightening and entertaining work, Johnson presents heroism through examples in history. From Alexander to Joan of Arc and George Washington to Marilyn Monroe, here are men and women from every age and corner of the world who have inspired and transformed their cultures and the world itself.
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Interesting, but deeply flawed
- By Kennet on 12-27-07
By: Paul Johnson
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Patton
- Blood, Guts, and Prayer
- By: Michael Keane
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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No one in the history of warfare was less likely to follow that advice than George S. Patton, Jr. His place was in front of his men, and he paid the price, when he lay bleeding to death in a bomb crater in France. Patton’s survival that day at the end of World War I was nothing short of miraculous. It confirmed the powerful sense of destiny that guided him through three decades of war and made him a military legend. Patton has been venerated and despised but rarely understood. In Patton: Blood, Guts, and Prayer, Michael Keane penetrates the fog of legend and reveals as compelling a human character as any in American history.
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A different view of Patton
- By Jean on 06-19-13
By: Michael Keane
What listeners say about Odysseus in America
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- J. Sharp
- 04-09-22
Should be required reading
Anyone who has any interaction with military service members, and those in some of the similar professions (police, firefighting, etc) should be required to read Dr. Shay's Odysseus in America, and Achilles in Vietnam. It is my opinion that moral/spiritual injury is the most under-identified serious trauma facing our service members today. Dr. Shay does an excellent job of taking classical literature and showing us how these issues are as old as humanity itself. He also helps pain a picture for us of how we can support those suffering with these issues. This work is a masterpiece, and everyone should read it.
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- Erik Hinshaw
- 11-19-23
must read!
my only negative comment is that now I have to listen to it multiple times because of how much information is in this book.
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- Huy Nguyen
- 01-21-24
One of the most important books about combat trauma
This book and his other work should be read by anyone who wishes to learn about combat trauma and how war has not changed all that much
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- Sarah R.
- 12-29-22
Excellent, excellent work
I read this title after a recommendation from my daughter. She had encountered the work during a politics course in college, and upon learning of a friend of mine suffering from PTSD, suggested I read it. As I listened, Odysseus in America helped me to put some of my friend’s behaviors and impulses into a language I could understand. Dr, Shay’s studies explain some of the manifestations of the injuries suffered and how to walk along with someone going through PTSD, even if that only means a silent awareness on my part. I highly recommend the work.
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- kenny freeman
- 08-22-22
amazing analysis of the past, present, and future.
simply brilliant. ive listened to both of his books and they are amazing. listen to lt now.
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