Reviews

Missionaries by Phil Klay

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catherinegabs's review

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adventurous challenging dark informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

juddt24's review

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5.0

Fascinating subject, beautiful writing, and surprisingly moving - one of the best books I've read in awhile.

mauricekofi's review

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

What this book lacks in explicit criticism of the American war machine and empire, it makes up for with the logical disillusionment of its ground-level actors. The soldiers, civilians, war journalists, terrorists/combatants, etc. And within that is the the criticism, the disconnect of high-minded global "solutions" from military and govt officials with the people on the ground dealing with the consequences of such solutions. I do not believe Klay embodies the values and beliefs of his characters, but rather the characters are clearly representations of the systems and ideals that operate in this world America attempts to influence and impact. And despite the disillusionment of each of its actors, none of the characters seem to lack self accountability in regards to their actions in these conflicts. The soldier is fully conscious of how he contributes to the machine, even if his agency is limited to his own self.

thirzaisreading's review

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

candacesiegle_greedyreader's review

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5.0

There are all sorts of missionaries in this excellent novel. The first are a group of Americans who build a school in a rural Colombian town to teach reading, math, and about a personal Jesus. When the guerilla came, followed by the paracos, they vanished. Killed? Fled? The other missionaries are those. of justice, technology, survival, all of which leave the people of Santander del Norte terrified and praying for the missionary who brings peace, no matter what that means.

Colombia is the "good war," one where there is belief that good is conquoring evil. For journalist Lisette, weary of covering the hopeless war in Afganistan, it doesn't turn out to be that way. Nor for Mason, an army medic in Afganistan who becomes a liaison with the Colombian special forces. His Colombian counterpart, Juan Pablo, faces reality with a pragmatic attitude, but none of them is on the front line as solidly as Abel, whose family was slaughtered by one faction and ends up serving that same group.

The first sections of the book that include Mason are too full of acronyms, like some kind of deadly secret boys' club. It makes it hard for non-military readers to be part of the story. This distancing from the reader may be intentional, with the endless fighting and death deflected in an alphabet soup. This dehumanizing way of waging war has spread across the globe, and no one knows this better than Mason.

As with any novel with several points of view, you'll be more invested in some than others. This is true of "Missionaries." But all of these points of view are needed to make the story complete. It's a devastating tale, worth telling.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for access to this title.

4.5 stars.
``Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader

brentlawless's review

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dark informative slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

shirleytupperfreeman's review

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Whoa - this was intense. It's about war and violence and geopolitics and so many things I don't really understand. What's worrisome is that probably the real people playing these roles don't fully understand them either. Mason is an American special forces operative who has served tours in Afghanistan and Iraq and is now serving as a trainer in Columbia. Juan Pablo is with military intelligence in Columbia and put in his time as a soldier during the early days of the drug wars. His daughter is a college student with an interest in human rights. Abel is a young Columbian who survived the massacre of his family and village. As a survivor he was picked up by Jefferson and served as his aid in his paramilitary endeavors before becoming a store-owning/tax paying 'normal' citizen. Jefferson has ambitions - he wants control and respect and wouldn't mind having his face on posters like Che or Castro or Chavez. Lisette is an American journalist covering war zones - from Afghanistan to Columbia. All of these characters, and several others, come together in Columbia. There are graphically violent scenes, military jargon, Columbian groups that I don't understand (narcos, paras, guerrillas, etc) but also some brilliant writing about subjects most of us would prefer to not know about. As one of the characters says at the end, "In the modern world, everything is related to everything."