In an unnamed American town in the Midwest lives the Keller family, who are still mourning the loss of their son and brother Larry, who disappeared during the war. Chris, the other son, wants to move on and marry Ann, Larry’s former fiancée. Meanwhile, we discover that Joe Keller, the father, is a successful factory owner who secretly allowed defective aircraft parts to be shipped during the war, leading to the deaths of many pilots. His business partner, and Ann’s father, Steve Deever, took the blame and went to prison. However, when Ann’s brother George arrives, he begins to stir up old wounds, and the truth slowly comes to light. I only picked up this book because there was an aircraft on the cover, which I needed for a reading challenge, but I was quickly drawn into this powerful story. It explores guilt, responsibility, family loyalty, and the difficult conflict between morality and security. An excellent and thought-provoking play.
“What? Do I raise the dead when I put him behind bars? Then what’ll I do it for? We used to shoot a man who acted like a dog, but honor was real there, you were protecting something. But here? This is the land of the great big dogs, you don’t love a man here, you eat him! That’s the principle; the only one we live by—it just happened to kill a few people this time, that’s all. The world’s that way, how can I take it out on him? What sense does that make? This is a zoo, a zoo!”