Blog > Book - Nam

This book is a collection of testimonies from [United States] personnel servicing in Vietnam war.

The stories vary: dehumanization of both enemy and self; adrenaline, drugs, cammaraderie, youth (too young people there)... By the end of the book there is a whole section about the difficulties of the comeback to civil live: both due to the transformation of the people during the war, as for the society that repulsed Vietnam war and everything related to that.

Veterans feel betrayed by a country that send them to fight, but latter received them as killers. One would wonder: if you are a private and you are given orders (either officially or unofficially -do not take prisioners-)... Is it possible to fight a war and remain a moral person?

In the book there is a glossary of common terms. Some quite terrible; even more fightening that the would become household expressions for people there:

double veteran - having sex with a woman and then killing her made one a double veteran.

A reference to The Deer Hunter movie is also in the book. I recall seeing this movie too young and be shocked by some of the situations there; I also recall not understanding the posttraumatic stress disorder of Christopher Walken's character.