War Stories book

My Vietnam Book

I had hoped to write the Great American Novel but after several failed starts, wrote instead about my experience as an army journalist in a combat division in 1970 and 1971, which I thought I could manage.   I have never been a fan of the Vietnam War but it's now 45 years later and between the copious letters I wrote home, my newspaper and magazine articles, and my photographs, I decided that I had something to say.   To deal with an often absurd experience, I frequently resorted to humor. I was limited to only 50 pictures in the book so I'm throwing a few strays into this post to show a bit of what I saw.

I often flew out to firebases and twice tramped in the jungle collecting stories.  The picture above is from my second time humping with an infantry unit during the dry season.

This mood shot was early in the morning after a rain.  The big enemies of firebases were either the mud - like here - or the dust.

I often visited Sandy Pad were loads were slung under Chinook helicopters and I caught rides to firebases.   I had friends controlling this pad who let me take pictures from the control tower.

There was down time for some in the rear.  This is our division's swimming pool, a fine place to get a sunburn.

I visited Saigon a number of times, generally in the back seat of a jeep as I was here.

I knew little about the Vietnamese, being closeted like most GIs on our bases.  This is what I could see from the jeep.

The book should be out the end of next month (March, 2016).    I worry that it lacks sufficient heroics and violence, particularly on my part, but I think it's an honest and human view of this now distant war.  I'll put out more posts after the book is released, unless the reaction is so negative that I go into hiding.