If you want to read a book of poetry written by an Iraq war veteran that is of the same (or arguably higher) caliber of Civil War veteran's work of poetry then you should read this. There is no political point being made in this work, just the author taking us to the battlefield and trying to explain the emotion felt during the war.

War is not pretty yet Turner has a way of turning something very gritty and devastating into something more beautiful. Though I had some difficulty falling in love with all of his poems in this book, I definitely will share this with our English 3 team to use for mentor texts. I also can't wait to get this in the hands of some of my students. Thank you Brian Turner for serving our country and your ability to put your experience in Iraq into words for others to read.

2.5

this was... fine? maybe poetry just isn't my thing.

Who says a soldier can't be a poet? In this one short book, Brian Turner became one of my favorite poets. His poems are visceral, emotional, sometimes violent, tangible, and above all, REAL. Personally, I think poetry is the best way to really experience a place or event through literature. That isn't true for everyone, obviously, but it is for me. Although I will never truly understand what soldiers go through, this short anthology has brought me just a little bit closer.

A few things that strike me: Brian Turner, even while he experiences the worst things war has to offer, never loses his humanity. He's caring, he's observant, he's still able to recognize the beauty of the place he is stationed, even if that beauty is soaked in violence. He never loses his ability to care for people, to love, and in fact wonders in his second to last poem if this year as a soldier has made him a lover. In another poem, "Sadiq", he says that no matter what happens to you or how angry you are, you should never enjoy killing.

Every poem in this book struck me. Many of them made me feel as if I'd lost my breath. They are absolutely fantastic. True wonders.

I don't read nearly as much poetry as I probably should, but honestly most contemporary poetry feels a little self indulgent. For that reason I tend to gravitate toward subject matter rather than poet, style, what's hot, etc. For that reason I read this collection, and because I heard Brian Turner read a couple of poems on the documentary Operation Homecoming. Besides the poems featured in the film, this collection is filled with others just as striking and intense in imagery and emotion. I don’t buy a lot of poetry, but I bought this one. It’s definitely for readers who either like excellent contemporary poetry, the subject matter of the human experience of war, or both.

An Iraq War veteran's poignant, spare poetry. Not the best poetry from a technical standpoint, but it's lyrical enough and it's important modern-poetry-of-witness enough that any technical weaknesses are more than made up for.

Here, Bullet by Brian Turner, who served in the U.S. army for seven years after receiving his MFA and was a team leader for one year in Iraq with the 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, won the 2005 Beatrice Hawley Award and was printed by Alice James Books — a nonprofit cooperative poetry press. (The title poem, “Here, Bullet,” was recently profiled in the Virtual Poetry Circle.) The collection is broken down into four sections, and each section is preceded by a quote relevant to it, with some even quoting the Qur’an. Turner is adept at illustrating the violence of war, but also the humanity that accompanies it. From the startling nature of rockets going off over head to the silence of bullets as they enter the body, he provides a keen eye into how those instruments of war impact both sides of the battle equally psychologically, physically, and spiritually.

Soldiers who craft wartime poetry have generally either fallen into the category of using graphic violence to shock and awe the reader or using quieter imagery to bring about reader understanding about psychological impacts of battle. There also are those that have political poems that are heavy on criticism or propaganda, but those would fall less into the wartime poetry category. Turner combines both violence and peace in his imagery, but in a unique way that has violence silently creeping into the lines and shocking readers. For instance, in “Eulogy” (page 20), readers may hardly notice the suicide of Private Miller because he takes “brass and fire into his mouth,” but once the birds fly up off the water by the sound, it is clear the brass and fire are from a gun. While outright, violent images can be eye-opening for readers, the quiet power in some of Turner’s lines are that much more lasting.

Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2011/08/here-bullet-by-brian-turner.html

Searing and beautiful.

An MFA and a soldier. Turner is uniquely qualified to look at his experience in Iraq through the eyes of an artist. The result here is eloquent. His poetry captures his love of the place, his awareness of the history -- he evokes Eden and Gilgamesh -- and his military background which includes watching friends die.

One line that still haunts me: "It should break your heart to kill."

This is the second time I've read this collection, and it's just as amazing this time.