Met Tom Evans for the first time at a barbecue at the Ridgefield,Ct Marine Corps League. He was alone and I decided to sit with him. He told me of finding our company gunnery sgt.

Since then I have followed some of his writings and must say he has a unique style and a story to tell. It is written well and factually. We were there together on some of the ops but he was on the other side of the perimeter. I did not know him in Vietnam, but did know some of his men.

The facts sometimes are scrambled, but his feelings are not, and they are not unique to him. He writes of the taboo subject PTSD
and gives a good accounting of it. Warriors from the beginning of time have had it, and only the Vietnam Vets have brought it to the attention of the world.

Read it as if the guy is your next door neighbor as that is who he is. I have two copies, one to loan out and another to keep and reread.

Semper Fi
WoodstockWEid
Alpha Co First Bn 9th Marines the Walking Dead

This book presents a candid and moving account of the author's experiences as a Marine in Viet Nam during the war. The author tells about his adjustment to civilian life after leaving the service and his difficult times dealing with the negative reactions of those who were against the war. But as the years pass, he goes from feeling he has to minimize or even omit mention of his service on resumes and job applications, to becoming a writer with many published articles about his Viet Nam experiences. Highly recommended.

Syndicated columnist Bob Greene heard the stories about anti-war protesters abusing Vietnam veterans, and wondered if they were true. He asked his readers to tell their stories, and then he checked them out. Despite denials from the Left, Greene found that protesters and others did, indeed, spit on and abuse returning veterans. He found the stories so compelling that he compiled them in this fascinating book. I think 'Homecoming' provides valuable perspective on a troubled time in U.S. history.

To be brutally honest, parts of this book reduced me to tears. This book concentrates on the homecoming of the Vietnam Veteran. The author asks the question "were returning soldiers spat upon their arrival to the States". Some answered yes, some answered no and some answered with incidents far more worse than just being spit upon. Out of any book dealing with a homecoming of the Vietnam Veteran, this is the one that I would strongly recommend.

this book will help the mainstream american understand the many different and complex experiences and reactions of those who returned from vietnam, as well as the feelings and reactions of their relatives and friends, and can also serve as a reference .

Actualy, I read this book which was translated in Japanese ( I am Japanese). I couldn't read it without weep. When Soliders return from Vetnam, they felt disillusion because they believed that they fight for thier country. However, there were many terrible things for them.

I bought this book in 73 and loved it. It IS the VietNam ---Marine Corps experience. The only thing I don't like about this book is the fact that I didn't write it. Thanks McVoy, and Semper Fi.

In this book-length, narrative poem, Layne McAvoy follows the life of a fictional (NOT the Audie Murphy of WWII and Hollywood fame), American boy whose Vietnam experience transforms him into a hero. The reader vicariously experiences the frustrations and humiliations of bootcamp, the horrors of war and the loyalty, camraderie and, ultimately, love, which the collective experience engenders amongst the enlisted men. The protagonist foregoes opportunities to leave, first, the battlefront and, second, Viet Cong prison camp, in a futile, Quixotic effort to end the war and ensure that all his comrades return home safe. I could not put this beautiful and heartrending book down.

The best general account of our war in Vietnam that I have read. I recommend it without reservation. Excellent photographs, most of which I have not seen elsewhere, and a surprisingly low price. I served as an infantryman in Vietnam, and I am gratified to find an even-handed and understanding narrative by two noted military writers. Thank you, Dr. McNab and Dr. Wiest!

This book hits the nail on the head. The information in this book really shows what an awful blot on US history the Vietnam War really was.

Williamson's writing of "In Black and White" is poignant and very reflective of the emotional turmoil experienced by the young men entering the Vietnam conflict. In Black and White struck me as much more than a Viet Nam war novel. It is a true love story that made me feel as if I were a part of the story as I read it. It is definitely a great read.

No matter the years that pass, stories still abound about Vietnam. From every back fence, every living room, every bar stool, we can hear again about the war that nobody wanted, the war where friends were made amid an enemy we didn't know, where young men fought and died for a cause never validated.

Dick Williamson's Rick Gleason is one of those young men--a husband and father--who thought of Canada, but then did his duty and stood in line to do his part. On the battlefield, he makes a friend such as he's never had and a special bond is formed, only to be severed by the harshness rampant in a magnificently lush South Asia terrain.

Surrounded by the things that men do in the name of
honor, Rick can think only of his son, missing his second birthday, while at home his wife is feeling the pain of separation, wondering if it's already over, and seeking solace in the only way she knows how.

Williamson's writing of "In Black and White" is crisp, sometimes harsh, always compassionate, and we get the feeling that he had to have "been there, done that." It makes me remember a time when I myself wanted to join up but cowered away because I knew I'd be sent to Vietnam. My brother, however, did join, and he was never the same thereafter, although he was one of the lucky ones who came home.

"In Black and White"--though it's been told before--
deserves to be told again and again, and to be read.
They were all heroes.

Does anyone have a used copy that I might purchase from them? I would need it by April 2001 preferably. Condition unimportant as long as it's readable. Contact: ilikerobots@hotmail.com

Tim O'Brien follows familiar patterns in most of his stories, long and short. It is these patterns that are explored here in regard to communication amongst and between foot soldiers in Vietnam. This is a well-researched book, and one that I recommend highly for all afficianados of Tim O'Brien and the craft of writing in general.

I was at Fire Support Base Illingsworth on 1 April 1970, April Fools Day, that the author describes in his book. His account is so accurate it was hard for me to read it. I thought back on my experience for days!

Having served as an infantryman in the 2nd of the 8th Cav during 1970, I can attest to the true to life account of 1st Air Cav operations in III Corps as described by the author.

This is by far the most comprehensive work on Vietnam during the past few years.

Previous books looked exclusively at the American aspect of the Vietnam War while others focused only at the Hanoi side. Dommen elucidates the perspectives of all the parties involved in the conflict, namely North and South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. He thinks the fates of the Indochinese countries are intertwined and the loss of the nationalists to the communists in Laos and Cambodia has adversely affected the war in Vietnam.

Dommen begins his story in 1626, but the fratricidal war actually started in 1600 when duke Nguyen Hoang broke away from the then Thanh Long (Hanoi) regime, settled in present-day central Vietnam. and thus founded South Vietnam. North and South fought against each other for 50 years from 1627 to 1677 followed by one hundred-year peace. It was only in 1778 when the southern general Nguyen Hue reunited the whole country. He unfortunately died young at the age of 40 and another southerner Nguyen Anh reunited the country for the second time in 1802.

Dommen also looks at the war as a struggle between communists and non communist-nationalists that eventually went the communist way. The assassination of President Diem, the US take over of the Vietnam War, Kissinger's machiavellian ploys to extricate the Americans out of Vietnam, and the eventual fate of the nationalists are carefully analyzed. He hopes the latter could recover one day the sovereignty that has been stolen from them by Hanoi, a regime of "mendicity and mendacity."

The author is to be congratulated for his in-depth review of this long and agonizing war, for which many lives have been lost, certainly not in vain. The lessons are still vivid and it is hoped we can learn enough from them to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

For anyone who wants an accurate, objective, and thorough understanding of 20th century conflict in Indochina, this work is essential. Dommens research is balanced, well planned and documented, and for a change provides a complete picture of the much mis-understood complexities of the conflict. The work is lengthy; a necessity in this case, but for those truly interested will not seem cumbersome. Dommens links Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia together as they should be linked to grasp the subject. Many works are published every month claiming to be full accountings of the Indochina struggle. Dommens literally is. Highly recommended for those truly interested.

This is an older book, but the info is timeless and very good compared on what is available today.

I have read this book, and allthough it is not the best that I have read, I still enjoyed it very much. I don't know if Michael had a personnal expierence with the LRRP/RANGERS, but he still did an excellent job of depicting the things that many of our young RANGER boys went through. Roadrunner6 out