Review of "The Only War We've Got: Early Days in South Vietnam" by Daniel Ford

I've read a lot of Vietnam memoirs. Most are by soldiers and Marines deep in the hottest years of the war. "The Only War We've Got" by Daniel Ford gives a completely different perspective. As a young Army vet and reporter, Mr. Ford was sent to Vietnam to cover what was going on there in 1964. This book is composed of his notes and dispatches home.

He takes the reader all through South Vietnam and gives us a glimpse of military activities throughout the country at that early stage of US involvement there. He participates in a wide variety of exercises ranging from US Air Force to US Navy to US Army (conventional and Special Forces). In his time in southwest Asia, he managed to sample a wide variety of units. He also had quite a bit of interaction with the native peoples. His insight is truly fascinating. The characters he meets on his journey are too interesting to be fiction. People like this only come from real life. Meeting the advisors who were running the war prior to its escalation was a real treat to me.

As the author explains in his epilogue, his attitude and that of most of the advisors he met were very naive. That's part of the magic of this book. It's difficult to step back beyond hindsight and view things the way we did when we were young. Mr. Ford has managed to do it. This book is an important addition to Vietnam literature and military history in general. I enjoyed it a lot.
The Only War We've Got: Early Days in South Vietnam by Daniel Ford

Latest review for "Recall! Return of the IRR"

Here's the latest, customer review for my book "Recall! Return of the IRR". It's great!! This book is still only $.99 on Kindle, Nookbooks, Sony, Kobo, and Smashwords if you'd like to check it out.

5.0 out of 5 stars THE PATRIOT, April 9, 2012

By

J. D. Michael Phelps "Michael Phelps" (Miami, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Recall! Return of the IRR (Kindle Edition)

I had the pleasure of reading Author DOUG DePEW'S "SAT & BAF: Memories of a Tower Rat", and could not wait to read his new novel; "RECALL: Return of the IRR". Anyone who has served in the United States Army, Air Force, Marine Corps Navy and Coast Guard will definitely enjoy both books. A walk down memory lane to jog your memories, rejuvenate your feelings of brotherhood for those with whom you served, and experienced all the "B_ _ _ S _ _ _", the "HURRY UP . . . and WAIT" of military life. One thing that came across loud and clear in Mr. DePew's "RECALL: Return of the IRR" is his pride in the United States of America, and his trust and love for the members of his unit(s). I must admit I was worried (probably as much as he was) that I would read of horrible experiences of war in Iraq. I was touched by the "Welcome Home" and parades given to those who answered the call to arms. Each of you deserved it. We did not have that coming home from the Viet Nam war.

Mr. DePew has written a novel that shines through with pride and respect. It gives his readers a very important lesson, that the young men and women who wear the uniforms of our Armed Forces can sleep well knowing our Constitution, our Bill of Rights and the freedoms we all take for granted are PROTECTED 24 hours a day, seven days a week, holidays included by the best, brightest equipped and trained military forces on this earth.

I salute you, Sir and thank you for your Service in both the United States Army and the United States Navy Reserves.
I am glad to know your life has turned out so well, your family can be very proud. You are a true PATRIOT.

One of my Sergeants, ART PARNELL is (was) from "The Ozarks in Missouri", as he would proudly say. I loved my travels through the 'Show Me' State, it is indeed, as Doug DePew says, 'Beautiful'!

Michael Phelps
Author Miami Shores, Florida

Recall! Return of the IRR

Nashville Songwriter's Association International

Anybody out there who's read my second book "Recall! Return of the IRR" knows how important music is to me. I came very close to getting into the industry at one point. That's a central theme to that book. Anyway, I've flirted with it ever since but always found a reason to put it off.

I'm finished putting it off! I got a life membership to NSAI today. It's an incredibly important organization to belong to if you want to break into songwriting in Nashville, and it's very helpful anywhere in the world. I took a trip to Nashville last weekend and decided I'm tired of waiting. I'm going to start developing my talents in music again.

That'll give me a great retirement hobby. I'll probably make another trip down to Nashville next month. I need to start networking again, and NSAI will give me a place and a way to do it.

Wish me luck!

Review of "Bloody Omaha: My Remembrances of That Day"

Bloody Omaha - My Remembrances of That Day by James Robert Copeland is different from most military memoirs. It isn't a harrowing account of back to back battles with non-stop action. It's just the story of one, regular guy from West Virginia. That regular guy happened to be a U.S. Army Ranger on the beaches of Normandy. We get to learn about Mr. Copeland's life from beginning to end in this book, and the war is really a pretty small part of the book. This is the story of an ordinary man taking part in extraordinary events. It is the story of America. I enjoyed it.

This book isn't written by a professional historian or writer. It's written by someone who knows J. R. Copeland. There's a bit of hero worship in it, and the writing could be better in places. That doesn't detract from the value of the story, though. In no place did it prevent me from following and enjoying the story.

"Bloody Omaha" is well worth the price I paid for it. I appreciate hearing Mr. Copeland's story. We've been losing thousands of these stories a week for years. Before long, there won't be anyone left to tell them. I was very pleased to see Mr. Copeland had the chance to tell his before it was too late. This isn't "Saving Private Ryan", but, then again, neither was the war for most people. It's a good book worth picking up. I say who cares if there's some hero worship in this book.

Men like Mr. Copeland deserve a bit of hero worship.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Omaha-Remembrances-Copeland-ebook/dp/B003R0LNZQ/ref=cm_cr-mr-title

Review of "Ty Cobb" by Charles C. Alexander

I think Ty Cobb by Charles Alexander is a must read for any fan of baseball. I've read other books about Cobb, but none compare to this one. Alexander presents us with a very balanced, fair view of Ty Cobb that I found quite interesting and well written.

This book is mostly recording Cobb's on the field accomplishments. It does talk about his personal life a bit, but it sticks mostly to baseball while he was still playing. I found some of Cobb's off the field antics quite interesting. I think there were some stories in this books that I hadn't read about in other Cobb biographies. Once Cobb is finally out of baseball, the last part of the books deals with his personal life in a more in-depth fashion. It also gets into his business life a bit. All of it is informative and interesting.

I enjoyed this book a lot. Ty Cobb was a fascinating character. He was an extremely complex person psychologically. This book is a must read for anyone that calls themselves a fan of baseball.

"SAT & BAF!" won Second Place!!

I'm happy to announce that "SAT & BAF! Memories of a Tower Rat" got second place in Reader Views Literary Awards (History/Science Category) for 2011!!

I haven't stopped smiling for days. Here's the complete list of winners for this year's contest.
Reader Views Literary Awards 2011 Winners

It's entered in several other contests that should be announcing finalists and winners over the next couple months. If nothing else, "SAT & BAF! Memories of a Tower Rat" won in this one. Thanks to everybody for your support. It's been a great week.
Doug

Reader's View Literary Awards

I just got word that my book "SAT & BAF! Memories of a Tower Rat" has made it as a finalist in the 2011 Reader's Views Literary Awards!! It made it under History/Science. The winners should be announced in the next few days. I'm so excited. I entered several contests, but this is the first one where I've done anything. This is exciting!! Wish me luck.
Reader's Views Literary Awards 2011 List of Finalists