A man enters the American army with the promise of a free education, only to be shipped off to Iraq to partake in a war that will forever change the way he sees the world. As the violence unfolds, he must reckon with his role as a foreign soldier in a war-torn land, in an army that does not seem interested in differentiating the innocent from the next military target. It is only after introspection on this moral dilemma that he returns to international conflict — not as a soldier, but as a member of the Peace Corps, now stationed in Ukraine to teach English.
It’s the story of the narrator in Caleb Shawn Sully’s eye-opening novel Covet the Chaos — but it’s the story of the author himself, just as much. This biographical fiction captures the essence of his experience abroad as both a soldier and a foreigner, and how the disillusionment he felt during his Army days led him to his new role as a teacher, all in the hopes he would seek redemption for his past.
In this Q & A, we talk with the author about where he and his narrator’s paths diverge, what readers can expect to take away from the novel — and what the American alt-rock band The Pixies had to do with his writing technique.
Q: Where did the idea for writing this novel first come from?
A: During my assignment in Eastern Europe, a Ukrainian language teacher, Misha, asked about my experience as a soldier. This sparked an engaging discussion about war, trauma and the unique challenges individuals from distinct cultures encounter during these terrifying ordeals. This led me to reflect on my dual experiences as a soldier and a Peace Corps volunteer.
Though both experiences found me as an outsider, the contexts could not have been more different. In Iraq, I was on the offensive, while in Ukraine, I was a volunteer collaborating with citizens rebuilding their post-Soviet world. Ukraine was post-Communist, whereas capitalism’s insatiable need for growth propagated the war in Iraq. It is always American soldiers sent overseas. Ukraine’s fighting men and women battled at home over terrain that has been in their family for generations.
I knew I had an amazing personal story to share. The journey through war and peace, trauma and terror, and experiences precipitated by capitalism, communism and culture, is a story that needs to be read.
Q: Your story explores a character with two nuanced identities, soldier and foreigner, as he faces a moral dilemma of invading a nation to try and bring about peace. How does the narrative examine this question of identity and intent?
A: I had to go before a general once as he dressed me down for being nice to the Iraqis. As he was scolding me, Bush’s motto, “Winning Hearts and Minds” circled through my thoughts. I was more interested in learning about Iraq’s culture than attaining a kill count.
Overall, I became increasingly disillusioned with our role in the war, and when I arrived home, I was eager to make amends by representing the USA again.
Although the Peace Corps was a perfect solution, effects from the war, and having lost out on three prime years of my life (dating, network of friends, building a career, stability, etc.) began to take its toll. However, after spending years in an unstable environment, one develops an unconscious craving for peril and unrest.
Q: The protagonist of Covet the Chaos remains nameless throughout the entire novel. What prompted this stylistic choice?
A: It is a given that the protagonist becomes a stand-in for anyone — particularly those drawn into violence, lawlessness and the brutal realities of the world. However, the lack of a name also underscores moral and existential ambiguity. Universal, biological, motives that one cannot escape from — sex, companionship, resistance to killing, paranoia, fear — drive him.
There is the theme of dehumanization. Human life is often cheap, and society reduces people to mere instruments of violence in one case or viewed as simply being an ‘Other.’ In both cases, labels, purpose and intention are applied with a wanton carelessness in which a name matters little when viewing the person within the context of a larger, penetrative, impersonal force of destruction that transcends any individual story.
Q: Like the protagonist, you served in Iraq before taking a position in Ukraine with the Peace Corps. How much of this story is based on your own personal experience?
A: The bones of the novel are true. However, the actual events took place over a lengthy time span. I joined the Army at the age of seventeen in 2001. I completed my contract with the Peace Corps at the age of twenty-nine in 2013. To fit the two adventures into a neat package, I had to rearrange stories from my life into a tighter chronological narrative. As I am unaware of their actual backgrounds, I wanted the creative liberty to write the histories for the supporting characters.
Q: Along with the main character’s introspection, the plot is also driven forwards by adrenaline-filled moments of peril. How did you balance the two elements of the novel to create a well-rounded narrative?
A: In the novel, there are Easter eggs to one of my favorite bands: The Pixies. I took inspiration from the band’s tendency towards oscillation, both in terms of rhythm and volume, and attempted to apply it to my prose. Even Kurt Cobain said that Nirvana would not exist without The Pixies, and that, “We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard.” Early on during the writing process, I made a conscious decision to follow that maxim.
On average, I read three books simultaneously. This is due to having pronounced attention deficit disorder and craving constant change. In a sense, I wrote two books contained within one novel for the same reasons.
Q: What can readers expect to take away from Covet the Chaos?
A: A reader will automatically project their own desires, fears, concerns and questions into the text, and with it, should come away with a deeper understanding of their own personal identity, morality and conception of fate.
I get a cathartic kick through challenge, and I enjoy learning about history, psychology and culture. Looking up a concept, personage or historical reference throughout a read is an exercise I take pleasure in.
True growth happens by way of cognitive dissonance. The protagonist certainly pushes through mental battles, and the reader can experience this journey with a meta-awareness of how they would have approached similar situations; refining their own perspectives on a variety of issues as the story unfolds.
Covet the Chaos is available for purchase here.
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Caleb Shawn Sully was born in Seattle, Washington, in 1984. He was raised in a religious cult — the ‘Moonies’, or Unification Church.
At the age of 17, he joined the Army, and after the events of the September 11 attacks, he was sent to the War in Iraq. He triple-majored in Anthropology, Sociology and History, and after completing his contract and graduating, he joined the Peace Corp and was sent to Ukraine.
He now dedicates his time between Seattle and Brazil and is happily married.