Falling Through the Earth

Falling Through the Earth

by Danielle Trussoni (Author)

Synopsis

From her father, Danielle Trussoni learned the importance of rock and roll, how to avoid the cops and never to shy away from a fight. Growing up, she was fascinated by the stories he told of his adventures as a tunnel rat in Vietnam, where he risked his life crawling head-first into holes to search for American POW's held underground. Ultimately, Danielle came to realize that when the man she adored drank too much, beat up strangers or mistreated her mother, it was because the war inside his head would never be over. And eventually, when her mother and siblings walked away and washed their hands of Dan Trussoni, Danielle did not.

As Danielle trails her father through nights of drinking, scores of wild girlfriends and years of bad dreams, a vivid and poignant portrait of a father-daughter relationship emerges. Theirs is a love story filled with anger, stubbornness, outrageous behaviour and battle scars that never completely heal.

'Trussoni has taken an extended trip to hell and come back with treasures from that drunken, burning, broken place. She writes of the effects of war without a hint of self-pity, with surprising humour, disarming candor, a hard-won wisdom and with uncannily sure-footed prose. Even if this book were not urgently important and devastatingly timely, I'd still urge you to read it for the sheer triumph of the author's gift' Alexandra Fuller, author of Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight

'A salient and timely reminder that a war's victims aren't limited to those in uniform nor demarcated by geography. This is an important and harrowing story' Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead

'Powerful and revealing. . . Wry, witty and unsentimental. [Trussoni] writes with high intelligence . . . and a fathomless interest in the aftershocks of war' Sunday Times

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 256
Edition: New edition
Publisher: Picador
Published: 17 Aug 2007

ISBN 10: 0330443658
ISBN 13: 9780330443654

Media Reviews
The affection, respect, and humor [Danielle Trussoni] brings to the task of revealing this complicated individual [her father] is testimony both to her creative abilities and to the generosity of her spirit. -- The New York Times Book Review Vivid and engrossing . . . a wonderfully complex and penetrating book. This is an accomplished debut from a writer with many talents. -- Chicago Tribune A richly textured history and timely reminder that a war's victims aren't limited to those in uniform nor demarcated by geography. --Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead A heartbreaking story of missed connections . . . this excellent memoir is much more than the sum of its parts. -- People (four stars) Powerful . . . Her book is a captivating triumph. -- The Capital Times (Wisconsin) In the hard-hitting and affectionate Falling Through the Earth, Danielle Trussoni, whose father was never able to shed his memories of Vietnam, traces how trauma is passed from generation to generation. -- Vogue A rich vein of material, and [Trussoni's] handling of it is deft . . . A moving memoir that flows like the best fiction but that has the punch of real life. -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Trussoni's memories of a hard-knocks childhood are vivid and spiky, and she relays her father's war stories with convincing bravado. -- Boston Sunday Globe
Author Bio
Danielle Trussoni grew up and now lives in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. She was a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and the Iowa Writers' Workshop.