Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Price of Duty by Todd Strasser

Title: Price of Duty
Author: Todd Strasser
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: July 17, 2018

 Format: Hardcover
Price: $17.99
Page Count: 192 pages
ISBN-13: 9781481497091

 Reading Level: Grades 9 and up (ages 14+)
Lexile: HL 690L
Interest Level: Grades 9 and up (ages 14+)

 Annotation: Jake Liddell is a hero, but he does not feel like one. After he fought in the war and experienced all that bloodshed, how can he stand in front of his family and friends and pretend to be okay?

 Plot and Content Summary: War hero Jake Liddell is home in America for one week, taking a short rest before he starts rehab and gets back to fighting in the war. He physically survived, but so much happened in the battlefield that haunts him day and night. Due to his service, he is awarded a Silver Star—but he questions whether it is something he deserves or not. When confronted about the realities of military service by a high school student filming a documentary, does Jake open up about how he is truthfully feeling?

 Evaluation: Throughout the story, we get flashbacks of what happened while Jake was fighting. Jake explicitly illustrates what happened to the people in his unit—his friends—and we get his perspective on how awful war is. The way Strasser describes what Jake is internally going through, all the thoughts and post-traumatic stress going on in his mind, and it allows us to experience just a fraction of what he had to go through.

Strasser does a good job at covering all people that have suffered from war in different ways—Brad committing suicide because the weight of it all crushed him, Jake experiencing survivor’s guilt, Morpiss losing body parts, and Skitballs dying due to being awfully wounded in battle. Additionally, we see Jake’s grandfather, “The General,” seeing all these things himself but still encouraging Jake to keep at it.

Although Strasser’s main point is that war is something that no one should want to be a part of, it does not feel forced. Whether Strasser was a military soldier or not, nobody has to look very far to find that these fictional stories are non-fiction for some.

Jake is always stuck between the truth (what he does not and will not say) and what people want to hear. We follow him as he contemplates speaking up, and see how the people in his life affect his decisions, both positively and negatively.

 Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness: Price of Duty offers an honest depiction of what can happen in the war. Because we are far from the battlefield, it is difficult to imagine what is actually going on there. With this glimpse into that world, it could encourage teens to realistically think about whether or not they want to sign up and be a part of the military. It offers a look into the side we do not normally see in the news and in advertisements.

 Issues Present: Death, suicide, PTSD, drug/alcohol/substance abuse

The theme in Price of Duty is all about the military and fighting in the war, and that is a controversial topic in and of itself. For adults who want to challenge this book, it may be because there is a strong pushback against enrolling for the military. America prides itself on fighting for freedom, so they may believe this book will influence teens in a negative way. Additionally, parents may want to shield their children from these explicit scenes. However, it does not do teens any good to hide this truth from them. They may have the option to join the military after high school, and Price of Duty can put things into perspective for them. We must be trusting and know that they are old enough to make informed decisions on their own.

 Book Talk Ideas: “I am tired and sick of war ... It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, for vengeance, for desolation. War is hell.” — William Tecumseh Sherman

Todd Strasser left this in the postscript, and it offers much to think about. After reading Price of Duty and learning all about what Jake felt and thought, what does this quote mean?

Genre/Subgenres: Realistic fiction; Mental illness

 Readalikes: A Land of Permanent Goodbyes by Atia Abawi, MWD by Brian David Johnson, Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am by Harry Mazer

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