The fifth and final book in the Echo Company series takes us back to the base hospital where Lieutenant Rebecca Phillips is serving out her tour. Before long, most of the people she knew in-country have gone home one way or another, and then...it's her turn. The prospect of returning to normal life is more daunting than the idea of staying in Vietnam for another year, but Rebecca does what she has to do. Arriving in the United States, being back home with her family, none of that is really what it should be—she's just too messed up. And she's not sure that will ever change.

The overall idea that war destroys more than the actual soldiers is strongly presented in this book. Granted, Rebecca did more than just stay on her base and deal with the casualties that came in as other nurses would have done. The tragic encounter that left her injured in book #3 was certainly closer to the experiences of a soldier than those of a nurse. However, that only made her more broken. The book makes it clear that seeing everything she did in the hospital was enough to make "normal life" very difficult.

I struggled a little with having the constant perspective of someone who never tells the full truth (almost never). I'm not saying it feels unrealistic though. Apparently even before the war, Rebecca tended to tell half-truths, at least to her parents. Their relationship has been strained since before she left—that's a lot of why she left. However, from a fiction POV standpoint, for me, at least, it got a little frustrating to know she was holding back so very much, and I don't mean just the stuff that it makes a lot of sense for her to not want to tell them.

It was also a little frustrating to see her get good advice from wise and kind people and basically just ignore it. Again, it might be completely realistic for real-life people suffering from such high levels of PTSD to act this way, but it did start to make me wonder what the point of the book was. If it was just to show us the depressing side of life after war, it wasn't going to turn out to be my favorite at all. Things did end on a somewhat lighter note, though, and I do wish I could see some kind of follow-up for these characters. On the other hand, the realistic follow-up might not be something I'd want to see.

In the first part of the book, I found myself hanging on to everything written about Michael, the main character during most of the rest of the series. Apparently his change in personality in the last book didn't bother me enough to make me dislike him. I'm still surprised that I picked up the first book in this series when I was a teenager, because it's really not my norm. I didn't read them all back then, I think just 1 and 2, but I'm really glad I went through it all now. Here, at the end of the series, I think I would still recommend it for readers who might be interested. There is some language and in the last book a decent amount of sexual references (nothing remotely graphic). ( )

I stayed up stupidly late reading this, on a school night too, and I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve reread parts of it in the last two months. I’ve said this before: White is so good at writing about people dealing with the aftermath of trauma, and about smart, difficult people making an effort to build relationships -- friendships as well as romances.

On Christmas morning, Rebecca lost her moral virginity, her sense of humor — and her two best friends. But, other than that, it was a hell of a holiday.

The Road Home is about Rebecca’s final six months serving as a nurse in Vietnam, and then the months which follow. It’s about the things that get her through the war (letters from a certain soldier, friendships, alcohol) and the difficulties of adjusting to life back home, especially when that means facing the circumstances which meant she chose to go to war in the first place (a close friend died fighting in Vietnam, her brother was drafted and she helped him run away to Canada, and her relationship with her parents is complicated by how they’ve responded to her career ambitions).

I love how this book deals realistically but hopefully with so many things. (If I hadn’t already spent so long reviewing this series, I would be inclined to babble even more about this particular book!) I have a lot of feelings and a lot of favourite passages.

There was so much liquor in Vietnam, and it was so unbelievably cheap, that most of the people she knew seemed to be turning into borderline — or even beyond — alcoholics. Certainly, she had never thought that she would gulp the stuff down like there was no tomorrow. Then again, around here, tomorrow was a pretty uncertain commodity.

How well did she actually know him? Sometimes, she worried that they might be figments of each other’s despairing imaginations. ( )

It has been a few years since I read this book and I know my memory isn't good. However, I remember enough about this book to know just how much of an impact it had on me.
The author didn't make things hapoy, cheerful and hopeful. Instead, what I would imagine a realistic picture was portrayed about a brutal war and the impact it has on people directly involved. Emerson took, what I believe were often the forgot heroes-the woman as often war literature and media focuses on men involved.
Because of this, the emotions she painted hit a person harder and are even more realistic. She chose not to cover up responses with what society would deem appropriate.
This is a wonderfully written book that opens the readers eyes and I truly think this is a must read for pre-teens who are able to handle this on up. The only regret I have is not reading or even knowing there were four other books in this series before this one as I think if I had been able to read the series in order, this book would have been even better. ( )

5/11 - Just bought my third copy, I need to stop loaning these out (replacements are getting harder and harder to find on-line)

I think LONG MAY SHE REIGN has edged out THE ROAD HOME as my favorite Ellen Emerson White book. Compared to Malibu Bobby, Michael is on the mean edge of "grouchy." There is still such a beautiful redemption to both Rebecca and Mike's journeys. You don't get the impression that things are going to be easy, but they're certainly going to be interesting.

3/12/12 - Every time I revisit this book, I find myself skimming more of Rebecca's conversations with Major Doyle (and wincing a little bit more at how much of a grouch Michael is). Still, there is something so cathartic about making it to the end. ( )

I haven't read a book that I enjoyed this much in a long time. I say enjoyed, but really it was more like being swept away on the emotional hurricane that is Lt. Rebecca Phillips. The Road Home made me bust out laughing, had me on the edge of my seat with fear and dread, and even made me cry a few times. I hardly ever cry over a book but this one had such an emotional impact I couldn't help but feel every moment of heartbreak, turmoil and even happiness in Rebecca's story.After losing the love of her life/childhood sweetheart to the Vietnam war and her beloved brother who flees to Canada to escape the draft, Ivy Leaguer Rebecca Phillips impulsively joins as a nurse and is assigned one year of active duty in Vietnam. Still hurting from her profound loss and estrangement from her family, Rebecca is forced to daily face the challenges of the emergency room where she and her co-workers try to save the men (boys really) who have been bombed, shot at, set on fire, or just gotten sick from the various diseases lurking in the jungle. If that weren't enough to mess with someone's head, after impulsively jumping in a helicopter (which she should never have gotten on in the first place) and being shot down over the jungle, Rebecca spends several days MIA in the jungle fleeing for her life until she stumbles upon a squad of American soldiers. Among the soldiers is Michael, a surly grunt, whose letters become a lifeline to Rebecca after her return to the hospital. Michael is so real to me - his fears and glimpses of hopes are all contained in his letters and just like Rebecca couldn't wait to read his latest. Upon her return from Vietnam, Rebecca comes home to find herself, her family and friends all changed beyond recognition. Her struggle to find her place is the World after being a part of such brutality and pain is what makes Rebecca's story so breathtaking.White's characters were so solid. Of course I loved Michael but one of my favorites is the cerebral Major, one of the head nurses at the field hospital. Her perfectness is legendary but so is her leniency with Rebecca. I most enjoyed their night time conversations - often requiring major mental gymnastics - where Major Doyle brought such depth and honesty to Rebecca's questions.I really don't know much about the Vietnam war. It seems to me they sort of glossed over that section in history (it was bad and lots of people died. the end). I knew there was plenty of controversy and that veterans were not treated with respect but I really didn't understand how it all fit together until I read this powerful book. Rebecca's story is full of loss and utter depression but her journey for a chance at happiness and hope was just so real to me.On a side note, I did feel like I had stumbled into the book mid-series and kept wondering if I was missing something. Turns out I was right. Ellen Emerson White (writing as Zack Emerson) wrote a series of four books called The Echo Company which follows Michael's company. It turns out White felt like she had to finish Rebecca's story (which begins in these books) and thus wrote The Road Home as a sort of conclusion. They are pretty hard to find, but I am hoping to get my hands on what will surely prove to be excellent reading. ( )