What do you think?
Rate this book
Falling Through the Earth
One of the New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of the Year
From her charismatic father, Danielle Trussoni learned how to rock and roll, outrun the police, and never shy away from a fight. Spending hour upon hour trailing him around the bars and honky-tonks of La Crosse, Wisconsin, young Danielle grew up fascinated by stories of her dad's adventures as a tunnel rat in Vietnam, where he'd risked his life crawling head first into narrow passageways to search for American POWs.
A vivid and poignant portrait of a daughter's relationship with her father, this funny, heartbreaking, and beautifully written memoir "makes plain that the horror of war doesn't end in the trenches" (Vanity Fair).
From her charismatic father, Danielle Trussoni learned how to rock and roll, outrun the police, and never shy away from a fight. Spending hour upon hour trailing him around the bars and honky-tonks of La Crosse, Wisconsin, young Danielle grew up fascinated by stories of her dad's adventures as a tunnel rat in Vietnam, where he'd risked his life crawling head first into narrow passageways to search for American POWs.
A vivid and poignant portrait of a daughter's relationship with her father, this funny, heartbreaking, and beautifully written memoir "makes plain that the horror of war doesn't end in the trenches" (Vanity Fair).
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
About the author
Danielle Trussoni
11 books1,342 followersDanielle Trussoni is the author of The Puzzle Master (June 13, 2023), The Ancestor, Angelology, The Fortress and Falling Through The Earth. Danielle is an internationally best-selling author whose work has been translated into over 30 languages.
Please get in touch with Danielle by writing her at danielle@danielletrussoni.com
Please get in touch with Danielle by writing her at danielle@danielletrussoni.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
June 23, 2016
This was a personal one for me. My dad was in the Army and fought in Vietnam. Met my mom there and brought us back to the States in 1972. No one knew about ptsd back when I was growing up. My dad too had some erratic behavior and we just figured it was the war. Great story!
August 22, 2014
My first impression was how this story chronicled a dozen coincidences with my own life. After reflection, I realized her incredible insight actually captured how so many youth of the next generation are impacted by after-effects of war.
In 1968, a future father serves as a tunnel rat in Viet Nam. After he has several children, from multiple mothers, he passes remnants of war along to them all. He's a hard drinker, hard worker, and has a hard time showing love. Put in an often bleak Wisconsin landscape, the father develops throat cancer, losing his voice. The child struggles to break away, ultimately finding her voice.
This is the Author's story, and mine. And for that reason, along with the beautifully crafted language, this may be the best book I've ever read.
The prose flows, word choice is sublime, and angst and anger and acceptance meld into a real coming of age. It makes me feel joy and hope that Danielle Trussoni can live this particular life, share it with us, and the world recognizes her gift of eloquence and talent.
In 1968, a future father serves as a tunnel rat in Viet Nam. After he has several children, from multiple mothers, he passes remnants of war along to them all. He's a hard drinker, hard worker, and has a hard time showing love. Put in an often bleak Wisconsin landscape, the father develops throat cancer, losing his voice. The child struggles to break away, ultimately finding her voice.
This is the Author's story, and mine. And for that reason, along with the beautifully crafted language, this may be the best book I've ever read.
The prose flows, word choice is sublime, and angst and anger and acceptance meld into a real coming of age. It makes me feel joy and hope that Danielle Trussoni can live this particular life, share it with us, and the world recognizes her gift of eloquence and talent.
July 23, 2020
Understanding our parents' history often helps us reconcile difficult aspects of their personality, decisions, and of their parenting. This memoir chronicles the growth and self-reflection of the author's upbringing, and how it was particularly influenced by being the daughter of a Vietnam Vet, "tunnel rat." Danielle Trussoni experienced a very different childhood and a complicated relationship with her father, which leads her to visit Vietnam as a young adult on a quest to further understand the enduring effects the War had on his psyche. Although she recognized the impact of Vietnam on her father, his marriage, and his role as a father and American Citizen, when she was young, this journey to the other side of the world (and to his world) allows her to delve further into the gravity of his traumatic time in Vietnam, specifically serving as a "tunnel rat" (a role I was oblivious of until reading this story) and facing death daily for years. Trussoni shares her newly acquired, first hand knowledge of her father's Vietnam years toggled with reflecting on pivotal past occurrences and interactions with this post-war dad. We, the reader, participate in her journey to reconcile angst, frustration, and an unconditional love for this mysterious, broken parent and hence, unusual childhood.
April 1, 2020
I can't say I really enjoyed this, but it really does feel wrong to rate someone's memoir low. I think this is about a 3 though, it definitely got better toward the end, even if many spots were rough.
September 27, 2011
I enjoyed reading this memoir. I have great interest in stories of Viet Nam and the soldiers that survived. She told an interesting story of her life with a father who was traumatized by that war.
March 18, 2023
Wow, such a powerful story. Perfectly written. I was mesmerized
Want to read
June 14, 2007NEW YORK TIMES BEST 10 BOOKS OF 2006
NONFICTION
FALLING THROUGH THE EARTH
A Memoir.
By Danielle Trussoni. Henry Holt & Company, $23.
This intense, at times searing memoir revisits the author's rough-and-tumble Wisconsin girlhood, spent on the wrong side of the tracks in the company of her father, a Vietnam vet who began his tour as "a cocksure country boy" but returned "wild and haunted," unfit for family life and driven to extremes of philandering, alcoholism and violence. Trussoni mixes these memories with spellbinding versions of the war stories her father reluctantly dredged up and with reflections on her own journey to Vietnam, undertaken in an attempt to recapture, and come to terms with, her father's experiences as a "tunnel rat" who volunteered for the harrowing duty of scouring underground labyrinths in search of an elusive and deadly enemy.
NONFICTION
FALLING THROUGH THE EARTH
A Memoir.
By Danielle Trussoni. Henry Holt & Company, $23.
This intense, at times searing memoir revisits the author's rough-and-tumble Wisconsin girlhood, spent on the wrong side of the tracks in the company of her father, a Vietnam vet who began his tour as "a cocksure country boy" but returned "wild and haunted," unfit for family life and driven to extremes of philandering, alcoholism and violence. Trussoni mixes these memories with spellbinding versions of the war stories her father reluctantly dredged up and with reflections on her own journey to Vietnam, undertaken in an attempt to recapture, and come to terms with, her father's experiences as a "tunnel rat" who volunteered for the harrowing duty of scouring underground labyrinths in search of an elusive and deadly enemy.
September 12, 2008
Falling Through the Earth is a memoir so skillfully wrought you can't help but becoming enraptured in her story. She writes about her father who served in Vietnam and came home with more than a few emotional scars. She deftly handles two stories (one of the young Danielle and then the older Danielle who visits Vietnam) and gradually merges them together to create a cathartic release by the end.
Wow. Her language is gorgeous. Her craft is beyond admirable. And at the heart of it all, it's thematically relatable to many people, I'm sure.
Wow. Her language is gorgeous. Her craft is beyond admirable. And at the heart of it all, it's thematically relatable to many people, I'm sure.
November 6, 2008
Danielle Trussoni is masterful in her writing, but even more impressive is how she deftly weaves parallel "story" lines from different eras of her life together. This is a must-read and a quick read. Hard to stomach at times, but amazingly-written.
April 7, 2020
Loved this memoir about the broad ripple effect of the Vietnam War on soldiers and their families, long after their return. I had a special interest since I've been to Vietnam and went to the Cu Chi tunnels where Danielle's father was. Rich with astute observances of human emotions and relationships.
June 2, 2008
The New York Times named this book one of its' Top Ten Books of 2006. Falling Through the Earth is the winner of the Michener-Copernicus Society of America Award for 2005–06. The story is told by the daughter of a Vietnam War veteran and is about his experiences in Vietnam as a "tunnel rat" and how those experiences impacted him and her relationship with her dad. Heartwarming, heartwrenching, and eyeopening. An excellent read for those who really want to understand the impact of the Vietnam War on some of the soldiers that fought there and their families.
December 16, 2007
Set in Wisconsin (which I always love!) Trussoni recounts her difficult relationship with her Vietnam War veteran father. The book weaves together an account of Trussoni's own pilgrimage to Vietnam to understand what happened to her father, as well as narratives from her own childhood. Wonderfully written!
July 10, 2017
I may be biased because it's set in Wisconsin. Also going with the theme of books I've been reading recently about not-so -present dads, that I have a personal interest in.
February 20, 2020
It was a very interesting book. Knowing of the family made it very good. Many of the places included in the book are familiar places I have been.
February 6, 2019
"Вдън земя" е една хаотична смесица от история, биография и автобиография, разказващи за един хаотичен живот, белязан от войната. За мен книгата спокойно може да се нарече биография на средностатистическото войнишко семейство, завихрено от емоциите, раните, болките на поствоенния живот.
Запознах се с перото на Даниел Трусони покрай серията й "Ангелология", в която се влюбих. На автобиографичната й книга попаднах случайно, но не можах да се стърпя да не надникна в света на тази талантлива писателка и да открия, че присъствието на България във втората част от фентъзи поредицата й съвсем не е случайно - самата тя е живяла у нас, години след събитията, описани във "Вдън земя".
Войната
Тя заема централно място в разказа на авторката, картините й също изглеждат резултат от дълбоко проучване и дългогодишно взиране, внимателно анализиране. Войната не е идеализирана, не е и заклеймена като вселенско зло. Не, тя е описана до голяма степен фактологично - с натуралистичните сцени на дистанцирания цинизъм на войниците, на моменти принудително заглушавайки човешкото в себе си - за да изпълнят дълга си, за да оцелеят. Но без прекомерен драматизъм. Без излишна чувствителност по темата.
А изводите - те са красноречиви. "Вдън земя" не просто ми разкри някои от непознатите за мен подробности за войната във Виетнам, но демонстрира ярко същността на съдбата на оцелелите не само в тази, но във всички войни. Тук "Американската мечта" я няма. Тук има само незараснали рани и опит за компенсация на ограбената от човешкото душа с хиперболизиране на всеки порок и недостатък. Сякаш счупеният човек, за да отблъсне съжалителните погледи и взирането в острите ръбчета на сърцето му, стига до крайности, замаскира болката си с всички отблъскващи мазки, на които е способен, само и само да придобие самоуверен образ.
Бащата
Образът на бащата на авторката - Дан Трусони е изкусно изрисуван. Родителят е представен такъв, какъвто го виждат повечето хора, разделили се с иконичната идеализирана представа за мама/татко. На моменти те трогва, после пък те отблъсква и потриса. И в това се крие една от най-ценните истини в книгата. Трусони някак е успяла да види баща си в неговата цялост. Да надникне отвъд любимия татко, отвъд неспособния да показва чувствата си мъж, отвъд счупената душа на един оцелял във Виетнам войник, който е оставил в тунелите част от себе си.
Завърнал се у дома, той няма как да бъде цял. Той е груб, безцеремонен, на моменти дори изглежда напълно пропаднал. Но в редките проблясъци на бащинското в него, когато любовта към децата все п��к успява да надвие ужаса на войната, той може да те разтопи от умиление. Това лашкане между лицата на Дан Трусони прави литературния му образ някак плътен, реален, дълбочинен.
Дъщерята
Паралелно с това се разкрива психологизма на отношенията баща - дъщеря. Онази неразривна връзка, преизпълнена с нежност и отдаденост, която страда и бива ранени от изборите, които правим. А това в крайна сметка води до разрушаването на идеологизираните образи, но никога - на любовта. В книгата присъства и удивителния паралел между предпочитаната и отхвърлената дъщеря, които на моменти изглежда, че получават същото количество оскъдна искрена нежност, макар на практика това да не е така.
Стремежът към дистанцирания родител, неистовите опити на детето да заслужи обичта и одобрението му, преминаването през опитите за взаимно разбиране... Те никога не дават резултата, който дава осъзнаването, че срещу теб стои човек от плът и кръв, със своите качества и недостатъци. Този човек трябва да обичаш и разбираш, а не идеала, не това, в което той може да се превърне, а истинския човек. И да се примиряваш с това, че този отсреща може да не е способен да те дари с обичта и вниманието, които ти очакваш да получиш, защото съдиш за това, което заслужаваш, по това, което и готов да дадеш.
В заключение, "Вдън земя" остава в библиотеката ми като една от добрите (авто)биографии, които съм чела и сред книгите на 2019-а година, които смятам за отлични попадения.
Запознах се с перото на Даниел Трусони покрай серията й "Ангелология", в която се влюбих. На автобиографичната й книга попаднах случайно, но не можах да се стърпя да не надникна в света на тази талантлива писателка и да открия, че присъствието на България във втората част от фентъзи поредицата й съвсем не е случайно - самата тя е живяла у нас, години след събитията, описани във "Вдън земя".
Войната
Тя заема централно място в разказа на авторката, картините й също изглеждат резултат от дълбоко проучване и дългогодишно взиране, внимателно анализиране. Войната не е идеализирана, не е и заклеймена като вселенско зло. Не, тя е описана до голяма степен фактологично - с натуралистичните сцени на дистанцирания цинизъм на войниците, на моменти принудително заглушавайки човешкото в себе си - за да изпълнят дълга си, за да оцелеят. Но без прекомерен драматизъм. Без излишна чувствителност по темата.
А изводите - те са красноречиви. "Вдън земя" не просто ми разкри някои от непознатите за мен подробности за войната във Виетнам, но демонстрира ярко същността на съдбата на оцелелите не само в тази, но във всички войни. Тук "Американската мечта" я няма. Тук има само незараснали рани и опит за компенсация на ограбената от човешкото душа с хиперболизиране на всеки порок и недостатък. Сякаш счупеният човек, за да отблъсне съжалителните погледи и взирането в острите ръбчета на сърцето му, стига до крайности, замаскира болката си с всички отблъскващи мазки, на които е способен, само и само да придобие самоуверен образ.
Бащата
Образът на бащата на авторката - Дан Трусони е изкусно изрисуван. Родителят е представен такъв, какъвто го виждат повечето хора, разделили се с иконичната идеализирана представа за мама/татко. На моменти те трогва, после пък те отблъсква и потриса. И в това се крие една от най-ценните истини в книгата. Трусони някак е успяла да види баща си в неговата цялост. Да надникне отвъд любимия татко, отвъд неспособния да показва чувствата си мъж, отвъд счупената душа на един оцелял във Виетнам войник, който е оставил в тунелите част от себе си.
Завърнал се у дома, той няма как да бъде цял. Той е груб, безцеремонен, на моменти дори изглежда напълно пропаднал. Но в редките проблясъци на бащинското в него, когато любовта към децата все п��к успява да надвие ужаса на войната, той може да те разтопи от умиление. Това лашкане между лицата на Дан Трусони прави литературния му образ някак плътен, реален, дълбочинен.
Дъщерята
Паралелно с това се разкрива психологизма на отношенията баща - дъщеря. Онази неразривна връзка, преизпълнена с нежност и отдаденост, която страда и бива ранени от изборите, които правим. А това в крайна сметка води до разрушаването на идеологизираните образи, но никога - на любовта. В книгата присъства и удивителния паралел между предпочитаната и отхвърлената дъщеря, които на моменти изглежда, че получават същото количество оскъдна искрена нежност, макар на практика това да не е така.
Стремежът към дистанцирания родител, неистовите опити на детето да заслужи обичта и одобрението му, преминаването през опитите за взаимно разбиране... Те никога не дават резултата, който дава осъзнаването, че срещу теб стои човек от плът и кръв, със своите качества и недостатъци. Този човек трябва да обичаш и разбираш, а не идеала, не това, в което той може да се превърне, а истинския човек. И да се примиряваш с това, че този отсреща може да не е способен да те дари с обичта и вниманието, които ти очакваш да получиш, защото съдиш за това, което заслужаваш, по това, което и готов да дадеш.
В заключение, "Вдън земя" остава в библиотеката ми като една от добрите (авто)биографии, които съм чела и сред книгите на 2019-а година, които смятам за отлични попадения.
September 29, 2017
This is a memoir by Danielle Trussoni about her father, Dan. Dan Trussoni served in Vietnam as a tunnel rat, an incredibly dangerous job which required stealing into tunnels the Vietnamese constructed throughout the country. It is of no surprise that he came home with PTSD, undiagnosed until many years later but very much in evidence from the start. Danielle grew up in an unbelievably abusive environment, the sole offspring who chose to live with her father after her parents' divorce, in what amounted to a series of crash pads with her father. While he loved his daughter, Dan Trussoni rarely let that get in the way of either his rages or what he wanted to do. And what he wanted to do almost always involved alcohol. Danielle Trussoni came to understand that when her father hurt her or her mother, drank too much, or beat up strangers, it was because of what he had seen in the tunnels. And that is my criticism of the book: she seems to give very little consideration that, at a minimum, her father had a co-morbid condition of alcoholism. He may well have ended up an unfeeling bully even without the trauma of Vietnam. I think a child often has a strong emotional need to explain a damaging parent's behavior in an almost romantic way. But difficult experiences don't make you an alcoholic. Yes, they can certainly complicate circumstances, but lots and lots of people with relatively positive life experiences become alcoholics as well. The book is worth reading, but I did not accept Trusonni's thesis as the sole explanation for her father's behavior.
September 6, 2019
This book was better than I expected - an honest account of her (somewhat rough and precocious) life dealing with her Dad, who suffers from PTSD. From her point of view as a child you see him as awful for the things he does, but you can love him too, like she does. Flipping back and forth in time it weaves together stories of her childhood and life passed a the bars of LaCrosse WI, her growing up and understanding what her dad went through, and her visiting Vietnam for answers. Sounds ho-hum, but it's not.
I've been reading tangentially related books lately (one fiction of a WWI vet returning to the US as an unwanted wounded man; and one autobiography of an Italian immigrant coming to the US in the late 1800s - some of the people form this city in Italy came to Genoa WI as well) so I saw this as an interesting modern chapter in the story of regular-Joe-Americans, children or grandchildren of immigrants. Being familiar with the places in the book made it particularly interesting for me. Plus, I really enjoy autobiographies, and understanding a life outside of your own perspective.
I've been reading tangentially related books lately (one fiction of a WWI vet returning to the US as an unwanted wounded man; and one autobiography of an Italian immigrant coming to the US in the late 1800s - some of the people form this city in Italy came to Genoa WI as well) so I saw this as an interesting modern chapter in the story of regular-Joe-Americans, children or grandchildren of immigrants. Being familiar with the places in the book made it particularly interesting for me. Plus, I really enjoy autobiographies, and understanding a life outside of your own perspective.
May 28, 2017
A very good memoir, honest and painful and illuminating of how the scars of war, including PTSD and substance abuse, filter through to families and touch many more people than just those sent off to fight for their countries. Children of divorce will identify with this, as will daughters whose rebellion was partly inspired by trying to be like, or to get attention from, a distant father. It's a shame that Trussoni only seems to realize her unfairness to her mother toward the end of the book, but the focus here is on her father, so it's set up to be a one-sided story from the outset. Powerful and sad.
Read
August 19, 2021No rating. I struggled getting into this book. Once I did, though, I had a hard time putting it down. This book reminded me of my own father daughter relationship. Though my dad didn’t return from a war damaged, he has fought his own personal war. This book had significant overlap between thoughts, events, and emotions of my own childhood and the author’s. It was nice to read something that resembled my own relationship. Made me feel not so alone.
November 25, 2017
A girl's relationship with her father is effected by his past and his experiences in Viet Nam. She goes to Viet Nam to see the places that shaped his future. This story jumps around in time so much that at times it is difficult to keep track. I wanted to get into this book more than what I did. The long narratives of his experiences in the war lost me.
April 18, 2018
The Tragedy of Vietnam and How it Spilled Into and Over One American Family
A brave and intimate memoir that recounts a daughter’s love for her courageous but flawed father. Not for the fainthearted, but will be of interest to anyone trying to understand the impact of returning from Vietnam having served in one of the most dangerous jobs at the time... being a tunnel rat.
A brave and intimate memoir that recounts a daughter’s love for her courageous but flawed father. Not for the fainthearted, but will be of interest to anyone trying to understand the impact of returning from Vietnam having served in one of the most dangerous jobs at the time... being a tunnel rat.
September 2, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this memoir. The author describes the chilling events her father went through in the tunnels in Vietnam and the lasting effects of the war on him and her family. This is one of the best memoirs I've ever read. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the author for a spectacular book.
May 7, 2017
Interesting personal narrative about a dysfunctional family as told by the daughter. Father was in Vietnam war and she returns to deal with the family demons. Much takes place in La Crosse, WI. Not at all a whiny self-discovery story, but some parts felt a little disjointed.
October 1, 2019
This is s 3.5 review. Having lived in LaCrosse I was familiar with the terrain. Back in the day there were a lot of families living on the edge with the kids the wreckage in the wake. But it was all about figuring it out and surviving. More common that you would have thought.
September 24, 2022
This was an interesting book to read. Having been married to a Vietnam vet and was something I felt would be good to read, the perception of a child’s view on life with a vet as a father. Bitter sweet.
November 16, 2022
Danielle Trussoni delivers an intimately frank and painful account of the agonizing aftermath of the Viet Nam war and its affects on the military survivors, their families, and their lives, in her memoir Falling Through the Earth.
January 29, 2021
This was quite an alright memoir. Her reflections on her own life are interspersed with her dad’s experiences with PTSD from the Vietnam War. I just didn’t find it that interesting.
March 30, 2021
3.5/5 stars
January 15, 2023
Well written and Trussoni does a good job making of her experiences and memories alive for the reader. Enjoyed this far more than I expected to (good prose) and the complex relationship with her father and her journey to come to terms with his trauma is described in moving and unflinching detail.
September 3, 2023
Beautifully written exploration of parent/child relationships and the damage the Viet Nam war did to soldiers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews