Exit A

by Anthony Swofford

Severin is the son of an Air Force pilot who lives on a military base in Japan. He loves Virginia, the daughter of the general who runs the base. Severin is soon caught up in Virginia's world, and the young couple fall into trouble way over their heads.

Genres: Fiction, Japan, Romance

287 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Anthony Swofford is a former United States Marine and author of the book Jarhead, published in 2003, which is primarily based on his accounts of various situations encountered in the first Gulf War.

Reviews

[Crt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite enjoyed this, starts off in. U.S. Air Force Base in Japan, sort of follows the lives of two kids...

[Chrissy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I can admit to a definite shift for the better between the first and second halves of the novel, I'm afraid that this often predictable tale did not satisfy me beyond the visceral appeal that a love story has for a hopeless romantic. I felt as though the story didn't "gel" as something realistic, or even probable. Not that fiction has to be painted in realism, but that spark that makes me care about characters was quite lacking. Swofford clearly has a hard time creating a coherent arrangement of events that he has not himself experienced, interpreting life through the lens of someone entirely not himself. It's unfortunate, given how powerful his interpretation of his experience in the Gulf War was.... sigh.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost as good at Jarhead.

[Olivia Meiring · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me a while to get into but then I suddenly got totally gripped, and it wouldn't let go!

[Leo · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I finished this book this morning it is one of those kinds of books where I don't have much to say or any emotions attached to it. I didn't love it but I didn't despite it either

[Royce · Rating 2 out of 5]

Promising start, disappointing finish. Swofford's writing is clear but the characters are all flawed and unlikable/unappealing.

[Maria Ella · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you are trapped, would you wait it out? Or would you find a way to get out?

Swofford takes another turn as he made his debut novel - a different genre from his memoirs as a marine. From Jarhead to Exit A, he put an element of first love, of Bonnie and Clyde and of conflict between nations.

Started in 1989, the novel is about Severin Boxx, son of an Air Force Colonel-trainer and Virginia Sachiko-Kindwall, daughter of the General that oversees Exit A and its enormous American air force base on the outskirts of Tokyo. Exit A is considered as the gateway to the outside world, of conflicts of Cold War, of North Korean plans to infiltrate Japan, and of its keys outside autonomy. We see that there is civilization outside - neon lights, warehouses, TV and noodle shops and Bonnie and Clyde - the most famous flick during that time.

Severin, a 17 year-old, is apparently inlove with Virginia Kindwall. The latter, being the general's daughter, is smart but defiant, thus became a petty criminal in the Japanese underworld. After Severin's rebellion with anonymity - putting Virginia's middle name as tattoo, quitting football in the middle of the game, and thrusting himself into her world, he is trapped in a trouble that is, for a teenager, way unmanageable and very much different from Bonnie and Clyde.

With a twist in the circumstance, their teenage romance ended abruptly and was reconnected by a mismanaged marriage, stale postcard, and Hideko. Soon, Severin, at his mid-thirties, embarked on a journey to find Virginia, rekindle their connections and bring her home.

Poignant and dark, Exit A is a tale of entrapment, of being jaded, and finally, of being found.

I first encountered the novel (paperback version) as a goodbuy in a Booksale branch near our residence. Though this is not part of 1001 books to read before you die, let alone part of my current group's 100 books to read for 2011-2012 (The Filipino Group in goodreads), I gave this affordable book a shot. In addition, it would not hurt if I do a fastpaced read on this, given it is thinner than my other classic novels to read on my shelf.

Part 1 is the introduction of the story and thus makes the story dragging. I am not an avid fan or war games, or of war in itself, but the scenarios described made me immersed in the story. The stiffness of the soldiers, the petty criminals, as well as the big-time kidnappers roaming some of Japan's metropolis made me realize that whatever we have here in my home city is the same as what in theirs.

Part 2 depicts the new life of Virginia and her defining moment as an adult, and elaborates the life of Severin as a PhD graduate mowing the lawn and trapped in a bizzare patient of his wife, thus inflicting a damage in their slowly dying marriage.

Part 3 makes the adventures of Severin as a middle-aged man as he looks for a way to meet Virginia and send her to her true family - her dad.

What was touching in the end is the moment when Virginia finally accepted her father into her heart, making herself whole, and Severin completing his quest. I was a bit dismayed by its open-ended angle with Severin and his unfinished business with his psychoanalyst wife, but he is determined that he is to answer those questions - with Virginia. Call it a fairy tale, but Swofford, in a way, admits this belief: no one cannot forget their first love, especially if it is true.

[Anthea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four words: First Love Never Dies.

[Holly Robins · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would give this a 2.5 if the system allowed. I enjoyed reading this book casually though it did not necessarily pull me in. The characters could have been much more fleshed out.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another winner from a neighborhood "Little Free Library ..." Dynamite first page. Otherwise a good story, although the extremes of the main characters' personalities and actions verge into cliché/unrealistic at times.

[John · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sweet Jesus this book was terrible. I'd say the dialogue was stilted but that's not fair to the word stilted.
I have a masochistic streak so I made it all the way to the end. The ending was good news/bad news kind of thing. The good news was that the book was over and I was free of it. The bad news was that the ending was executed as clumsily as the rest of it. A major character undergoes a change of heart that comes out of nowhere. It was almost as if Swofford's editor told him "You have to stop now!" although that assumes that someone actually "edited" this and the idea that someone out there is really that poor at their job as Swofford is at his makes me sad.

[J.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The middle of the story dragged down into this petty tale of infidelity and sex that felt out of place compared to the rest of the novel. The narrative skipping ahead didn't bother me, especially compared to the previously mentioned problem. Some of the writing was a bit too dry and stoic for my taste, however there is a good tale, here, about redemption, pride and time. I wish there was more exploration on these themes in the novel, but like I said, having endless chapters about who is cheating on who gets the story nowhere.

[Kristal Stidham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gotta' love a quest to find one's unconsummated first-love. This one is not a romance, though -- it's gritty and it moves fast. I liked the author's style, but was disappointed with the un-characteristic -lack- of detail when it came to the long-awaited penultimate scene.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stupid opinion ahead:
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God, why did it end so abruptly?! I wish there had been more Severin-Virginia moments. Like how they decided to go on with their life together and such. I can't believe that was how it freaking ended. An absolute cliff-hanger.

[Dawn Leitheuser · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved!! Harsh and real. My only problem with it was it ended.

[Michael Spivey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A literary masterpiece.

[Tiffanie Serritella · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books of all time. I wish he wrote more books. Honestly I thought it was better than jarhead.

[Jolene Knighton · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was interesting to read about life in Japan, but I wouldn't recommend the book.

[Kayla Hausser · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very unlikable characters with jumpy character goals. Characters frequently do nonsensical things and not enough is done to explain why.

[R.J. MacDonald · Rating 2 out of 5]

My first one star review and I felt bad giving one star to anyone, so I upped it to 2 stars. About page 2o something, I thought about giving it up. The book didn't engage me and at times it felt like a Guide to Japan by someone who'd visited it - 'Look what food names I know in Japaneses! Look what I can say in Japanese!' I should have stopped, but I didn't have another book so I kept going hoping it would get better. It didn't. If anything it got worse at the end. I didn't sympathise or empathise with the characters or the plot to care what happened to them. I don't think this book would have found a publisher without the Jarhead hook to hang it on.

[Andrew Lamb · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be completely honest, I could not finish this book. Many war books have graphic imagery, but this one had so much that it was hard to continue reading. I recommend this author‘s other book, which is called “jar head“. I enjoyed that book but this one was pretty sexually explicit in ways I found uncomfortable. If you like this author a lot, it wouldn’t matter to you. But it did to me.

[Lanier · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just picked this one up that Rebecca C. recommended. Not sure if it's a love story or more, but Rebecca doesn't like lovey-dovey crap, so I'm hoping their's a bit more to it??? I'm a bit further into it and it's set on a 1989 Army base in Japan, where Japanese-American teen girl, Virginia, is part of some sort of scam team that steals. She realizes that Kid Jock, Severin Boxx, is hot after her and she's leading him on.... Question is, will she use him as part of her little gang's "fall guy" or does she want more from him???

Finished this weak work Friday but have been throwing up since its terrible ending. The middle 60 pages in San Fran were useless. I mean, why skip the Prison Years, that would've been something I haven't read before: Japanese Prison??? or the middle years that were skipped, instead of some loser in California.

In all fairness, the book started off well, but Swofford dropped the ball, big time. You present a great dilemma and you had some pretty good gems: "Of course my father is [...]afflicted by me." (46)., 143-4 pieces of "Couldn't we just forget the last century", and my favorite, Bahn's "We die, too, when those we love die." and “If you drive fast enough maybe the ghosts don’t appear,” (219). In fact all of page 219 was amazing, minus the fact that Vietnam was ignored.

However, you take us to Hue, Vietnam, but you don't give any real local color, except dog!!! Have you ever been there or were your simply phoning it in from GOOGLE or Wikipedia? I spent three weeks there in the summer of 2007 and you don't paint any kind of picture of how intensely beautiful, hopeful and Communistic it is. Oh, and the food, spicy, delicious, seafood, Banh Canh Cua Roi an awesome crabmeat soup, with broad thick noodles, cilantro, shallots, onions, ground beef, chillies and other spices that I ate about five times it was so tasty. For anyone who gets sucked into this trash and you want to learn a bit more about the real Hue, visit http://vietshawn.tumblr.com/

See the food and visit your local Vietnamese restaurant for something more palatable.

I thought your ending would've been the old man dying while Severo was finding Sachiko, they get a letter saying, "It wasn't about me, I only wanted to get you two back together. Farewell...." You know great soldiers never die, they just fade away, kind of thing?

[Alejandro Mujica · Rating 3 out of 5]

For many creative-writing students in college, the workshop is where they share their writing experiments with an audience and adapt to their critiques. Sometimes a student's experiment in style or narrative distance is well-received, and other times it's shot down for being unnecessarily "crafty," or it's not used to great effect.

***SOME SPOILERS AHEAD***

In Swofford's first novel, the latter feels more accurate. Time jumps in _Exit A_ are almost startling, and they take away from the overall focus of the story. At least on a first read, these jumps feel unnecessary, and could have gone down two routes in my opinion: Virginia and Severin's histories could have been described alongside one another, not giving uneven attention to one or the other; or Virginia's history could have been revealed through Yoshida or Miyoko, or explained in more detail from Virginia herself.

The narrative structure unravels as the story picks up speed to an ending that is so lighthearted that it feels unnatural in comparison to the previous parts that were full of kidnappings, arrests, and mutually assured adultery. There's a button on this book where a suture would've made more sense.

Swofford's fly-on-the-wall narrative style is mostly just as stoic as in _Jarhead_ except for a few musing from inside the characters' thoughts, which don't quite pull the reader away. It's a clever balancing act between anxious thoughts and images that stand well enough on their own and don't require explanation.

I recommend this book for _Jarhead_ fans, though the narrative structure and ending might be off-putting to some readers. That's not to say it's a chore, just not as smooth and consistently engaging as his Gulf-War memoir.

[Sunflower · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two teenage military dependents, a football star and the General's daughter, meet on the base in Japan and fall in love. Both rebel in their own ways against the discipline of Army life and what it has done to their fathers, and for both the consequences lead them to pay handsomely: one lands up in jail for 5 years and the other is exiled to University overseas, as their families suffer in other ways. Exit A features throughout the book, often as a major turning point in the story, and a transition from the Base to the streets and the Japanese underworld. As the years go by, they both make lives for themselves, but there is the feeling of something unresolved. Yes, this book is uneven, the language is at times stilted and there are loose ends not dealt with, but it felt appropriate to me. I liked the background of the Base, the Japanese surroundings, and the way things came together at the end.

[Frederick Bingham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is about Severin Boxx and Virginia Kindwoll. They are two kids who grow up on Yokota air base near Tokyo as military dependents. Near the end of high school Virginia starts to hang out with some local Japanese petty criminals off the base. Severin falls in love with Virginia, but she ends up in some criminality that goes way over her head. She ends up in Japanese prison. Later, Severin returns to Japan to find her and pick up where they left off. Embedded in the story is the tensioned relationship between the Japanese and the US military stationed there and the difficulties of life in the military dependent system.The story is read by John Slattery. Although he did a decent job with much of it, I wish he had spent some more time learning Japanese pronunciation. He does really butcher a number of the words.

[Royce · Rating 3 out of 5]

i like anything (books, movies, tv shows) that is set in japan, deals with the idiosyncracies of japanese culture, and basically reminds me of all the times i've been there. like lost in translation, exit a evoked memories of the crowded subways, the black suits of the business men, the bicycles of the housewife, the mom and pop shops that dot the rushed, neon illuminated, mad house that is tokyo. the story, about a straight laced football star who gets sucked in by a rebellious general's daughter is pretty well written, swofford was able to get a handle on the mind set of the japanese, how they view outsiders, even those who are japanese by decent, but not by birth.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very uneven read. Some situations and sections of dialogue that I just couldn't get away with, others that were strikingly effective. The story is made up of places,both physical (American military base) and in the head (seventeen-year-old football jock) that Swofford has been in and can report well. He made me wonder if he's heard people in those places talk the way his characters do in this story, but didn't always convince me that he had. I have to give him credit for not simply setting out to write swashbuckling adventure yarns, but this felt like a first novel by someone who is still learning the trade.

[Cynthia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to the audio version of this book. While the narration was excellent, the story was a bit convoluted and unnatural. It is basically a story about a bunch of people doing really stupid things for really stupid reasons and then dealing with the consequences of their actions. I found it lacking in character development, although there was plenty of opportunity to imagine the lives of the various characters. There was an abundance of WTF? moments and the resolution was so implausible, it actually worked. I didn't dislike the book but I don't think I would recommend it.

[Kathy Huynh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm glad I was without internet access when I borrowed this novel. Otherwise I wouldn't have given it a chance if I saw the negative reviews and low ratings on goodreads. This book was nice. It had a love story that engaged me and left me wanting more, just that extra page at the end to provide complete closure you know? The story unfolded with lots of speedy turns and abrupt twists which I liked but at times can create a choppy story. Overall it was a rewarding read as I empathised with the character's journey and in the end, his triumph.

[Alex Sheldon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Getting through the beginning of this was a bit of a struggle, as I wasn't too happy reading up on two teenagers that were yet to reach maturity and following every foolish action they chose to take.
Had I not been on a long train journey I might have given up altogether.

But it made amends by the second half, since the story spans 16 years in the life of our two main characters, so I was glad to see them finally grown up and acting in a way I could better relate to.

Overall a good little drama, with a taste of the US, Japan & Vietnam.