Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

For the film adaptation, see Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (film)

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk is a novel written by Ben Fountain, which was published in early May 2012. The novel received highly positive reviews from critics and won several year-end awards, including the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction.

Plot

Specialist Billy Lynn is part of a unit called the Bravo Squad, fighting in Iraq. After a brief but intense fight anointed as "the Battle of Al-Ansakar Canal", Lynn and seven others surviving members return to the U.S. hailed as war heroes. They are sent on a "Victory Tour" by the government to invoke spirit and support for the war. As part of this Victory Tour, Bravo Squad come as guests of the Dallas Cowboys for their Thanksgiving game, and are to make an appearance during the halftime show with Destiny's Child. However, it is later on revealed that following the Victory Tour, the government has not relieved the men of their duty for their achievements and they are to return to Iraq. Lynn begins to express disenchantment with the treatment of supposed war heroes from American citizens who have seen nothing of war. He engages in a fight, has revelations about his family and how he was raised, reconsiders past decisions, and reminisces about dead comrades, including Shroom, the sergeant who died in Billy's arms in Iraq. As Lynn's time in the U.S. and at the Cowboys' stadium wraps to a close, he experiences a lusty and intimate romance with a cheerleader on the team. However, she becomes shocked and noticeably shaken when he informs her that he is to return to duty despite his squad's accomplishments. She reassures him she wants to stay in contact and that they will make it work, but he is not so optimistic: he figures that people don't want to wait years for a soldier to return home. As he leaves, he finds comfort in his comrades and friends who accompany him as they leave the Cowboys' stadium.

Film adaptation

Main article: Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (film)

A movie based on the novel is now in post-production and was directed by two-time Oscar Winner Ang Lee. Casting calls for the film showed that production began in April 2015 and the movie filmed in Atlanta and the Middle East. The cast includes Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, Vin Diesel, Steve Martin, Chris Tucker, and Ben Platt, with newcomer Joe Alwyn portraying Billy Lynn.