Kristin Hannah’s The Women has been a bestseller since its release, and deservedly so. It joins a surge of historical/well-researched fiction publications that offer readers the opportunity to develop understanding by integrating real life events with compelling characters that represent the complexity of stories of true lived experience.
The Women follows Frances "Frankie" McGrath, a young nurse who enlists to serve in Vietnam, following in the footsteps of her brother and a family history of male military service. Misled by war stories that have painted a picture of camaraderie and well-resourced hospitals, Frankie faces conditions in Vietnam that are a very different reality. Hannah describes in detail the ongoing onslaughts, instability, lack of resources, and the very human impact on both American and Vietnamese people. Hannah also includes inconsistencies between government and news media sources and the on-the-ground reality, which the central character struggles to wrap her head around.
In addition to the betrayals of government, Frankie experiences the betrayal of other Americans. Believing that her service would serve a larger cause and bring honor to her family and country, Frankie encounters a complicated and unsupportive reception upon return to the United States. Although history has well documented the experience of returning male service members, Hannah focuses on the specific and unique challenges faced by women. Manifested in the character Frankie, Hannah describes the hostility, lack of support, and complete absence of recognition that women who served, nurses who served, indeed were veterans.
The trauma response that is portrayed in Frankie is one of so many Vietnam service members—mental health issues related to war trauma and the absence of resources, substance use to escape the emotional pain, and the profound lack of recognition and support for the service of women. In time, Frankie ultimately determines a path forward that includes bringing together other service women, mental health services, substance abuse treatment, and nature. Social workers know that this combination of response is what heals trauma.
Social workers who work with veterans of the Vietnam War must have knowledge and sensitivity to the unique features of this particular war, including the trauma of service, as well as return. Hannah has provided a gift to the social work profession with a story that is both unique and everystory about the women who served.
Reviewed by Lisa Eible, DSW, MSW, LCSW. Eible is a consultant, writer, and educator with more than 34 years of social work experience. Lisa has advanced certificates in cultural competence and trauma. Professional interests include social work in healthcare, administration, leadership, supervision, Relational-Cultural Theory, and diversity issues. Lisa is a member of The Relational-Cultural Theory Collective.