Having lived in Vietnam for a year I was a little ashamed at how limited my knowledge was about the war. I can't really say that this book has given me a better understand of its history however I can say that it gives an excellent insight into what life was like for this vet in particular. It is well written, informative, emotional and even funny at times.

What I really liked about the memoir is that you could tell it was therapeutic for him. That the act of finally telling his story was helping him heal some how.

It has definitely left me with a desire to learn more about the war.

This was a different take on some of the books about Vietnam that I have read. The author is describing his journey after two years of college and not having the money to go back gets drafted. He then spends time through basic and then takes the reader through ways that he tried to get out of being deployed to an actual unit that would be fighting. All of this and he still ended up in the jungles fighting to survive and actually making friends and really wanting them to make it as well. You get a real sense that this book is almost therapeutic for the author. What you really get is an honest look at young men sent to a foreign country fighting to survive in the jungles and besides the enemy they have other creatures that they have never seen before. Only to go out once again because some higher up has a plan but is not going out with them. This is there story, the grunts. The fun, boredom, sad times and then dealing with coming home and having to put it all together. Overall not a bad book at all.

An insight to the Vietnam conflict that was new to me. This book makes you think and gives you a perspective through the eyes of a conflicted infantry soldier. I met these men of my age when I was serving in Singapore and they flew down to us on R&R and I can vouch for the trauma that was evident in their eyes and body language.

As the daughter of a Veteran of the Vietnam War, this book really touched me. I will be purchasing a copy for my Dad.

I'll start by saying that the quality of writing in this one is not stellar. There are passages that feel wordy and repetitive, and instances where the narrative is fairly mechanical (more "telling" than "showing"). However, my overall impression is still a positive one. I've read a good number of war memoirs, the majority being from the Vietnam War, and I have lamented the fact that they were primarily told from the perspective of a relatively high-ranking member of the military. I wanted the voice of the draftee, the "grunt," and this is what Beed delivers. I also appreciate his explanation of military terminology throughout to clarify elements of the story. A worthwhile read.

Beed has written a memoir of experiences that ten of thousands of young men in the late 60's lived through. Being drafted to fight in Vietnam, going there and doing his job, and returning to the U.S. a changed and damaged man. Experiencing hell, dealing with it, and pushing on. He tells his story through the eyes of an infantryman. And he tells it excellently, honestly, and openly. The training, the waiting, the boredom, the excitement, and the outright terror of the deployment. The incompetence of the "lifers". The return home, the anger, the drinking, the confusion, and ultimately, the conquering of the experiences. While Beed experiences an amazing amount of combat, he never once "blows his own horn", instead he relates the experiences in a plain-spoken, yet vivid manner. The result is that the reader feels they are there with Beed. The same when he returns home, never boasting of his experiences, instead keeping them to himself. Yet the way he opens up in the end of the book, you have to marvel at the man, his strength, and of the other men with similar experiences. Excellent book!