Read With Me : Tribe -

This year, we’ve started a series called ‘Read With Me’ we’re sharing all most of what we’ve read this year in hopes you’ll follow suit and dust off that book you’ve been meaning to devour! Here are all the previous Read With Me posts.

Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by Sebastian Junger, read almost like a term paper, in the best sense of course. Tribe offered a flowing narrative, an easy to follow and logical evolution, while continuously being punctuated with primary sources. I truly enjoyed Tribe because it resonated with me as a human looking for community, but more importantly, I think it allowed me to better understand veterans and military folks.

Tribe investigates our past as humans and discusses the implications of evolving so rapidly. Moving from trees to caves to communal villages to individual boxes where we barely interact with anyone besides family, it’s easy to understand why we feel so disconnected, it’s because we are.

The novel begins by explaining the phenomena that most white captives taken by native Americans choose to stay with their captors even when they could escape or rescues were made by their fellow Englishmen. According to Franklin’s journal, “Tho’ ransomed by their friends, and treated with all imaginable tenderness to prevail with them to stay among the English, yet in a short time they become disgusted with our manner of life… and take the first good opportunity of escaping again into the woods.” Maybe it had something to do with the successful farming and hunting of the natives, but maybe it did have to do with living in close quarters with fellow men, treating each day as an opportunity to survive instead of stockpile, honoring both a connection to each other and the land.

Tribe not only asks why tribal life might seem so appealing but also why western society is so unappealing and at the heart of it, this is truly what I wanted to know. After traveling the world and realizing our country is one of surplus, it’s hard for me to understand the ever-increasing rates of anxiety and depression. We have it so good and yet so many of us are living a life of depression and disconnection and for some, that results in suicide. It’s tragic.

By citing many different tribal societies, it became clear that we often lack true connection today. It’s only in the face of a storm or say, a huge terrorist attack or school shooting that a mass of people come together to connect and help. It’s easy then to realize how alone soldiers must feel when they leave their battalion and reenter their comfortable lives with their loving wives (and husbands) and families.

You’ll Enjoy Tribe if :

You recently came home from deployment.
You are/were part of a group and you feel separated.
You are curious about human nature.
You want to empathize with veterans.
You have experience with or are interested in PTSD.
You have a loved one and friend in the service.

A Few Reasons For Why We Should Read More Often :

Expands your vocabulary and improves your writing

I enjoy reading novels written by investigative journalists and those willing to include their sources right into the narrative as if they were a character themselves. Tribe followed that format. Lots of references to first-person experience, scientific journals, historical journals, texts, etc.

Improves your understanding of the world

Tribe offered a lot of historical context for our illusion of connection and reality of disconnection in today’s society. I was fascinated while learning about the lifestyles mentioned (and not limited to) in Tribe such as the native Americans, Mayans, Puritan leaders in New England, and the nomadic !Kung people (yes, that ! was intentional) of the Kalahari. It offers a wider framework of how we did and could be interacting with others in our communities.

Prepares you to take action and create change

When thinking about the positive implications of Tribe, I think about the conversations that will be had, the connections strengthened, and the understanding deepened. I encourage you to buy this book for any veterans in your life. I think it’s a positive nod to their paths, but also offers some consolation for their struggle. It may offer some ideas and words that are already present, but somehow unreachable. Allow Tribe to act as a bridge and conversation starter with your loved ones who may be dealing with these feelings of disconnection or uselessness.

Boosts your imagination and creativity and improves brain function

For me, Tribe encourages creative thought when it comes to conversation, counseling, and meditation pertaining to vets, medical professionals, extreme adventuring groups, and other complex and unique tribes of people. After reading this book, I feel I have a better understanding of one’s individual needs and struggles after being separated from such an experience or group setting.

Reading sets a great example for those around you

I read Tribe in just over a weekend. I think picking up a book and devouring it encourages others to do the same. The best part about finishing a book quickly is passing it off to whoever is nearby so they can do the same and continue the cycle.