From Publishers Weekly
Retired army brigadier general Bahnsen (West Point class of 1956) presents his war memoir with the help of old military writing pro Roberts (Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun, etc.) in an oddly shaped narrative. It consists primarily of Bahnsen's vivid, first-person recollections of his two action-packed Vietnam tours of duty, in 1966–1967 and 1968–1969, with the 118th Assault Helicopter Company, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment and the 1st Armored Squadron. Interspersed with Bahnsen's remembrances are detailed oral history–like interviews with the general's former military colleagues, along with occasional italicized passages, presumably from Roberts, since several refer to Bahnsen in the third person. Bold subheads mark transitions between Bahnsen's offerings and the others, such as "Then Major Jim Dozier talks about pacification and Vietnamization." The stories, which rely significantly on reconstructed quotes, paint Bahnsen as a "tough, bullheaded" warrior, as one of his former sergeants puts it. Bahnsen, who Roberts says fought in Vietnam with "nonstop heroism," remains a true believer in the mission in that controversial war. "My only regrets," he says, "are the men killed and wounded and the fact that we did not kill more of the communist bastards!" 16 pages of color photos. (Mar.)
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Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Although Roberts, his coauthor, wrote Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun (1989), General Bahnsen is no avatar of Roberts' idol, resembling him in only a few respects. Personally courageous to a fault, Bahnsen always defined the task ahead so carefully that the men under him could understand it, not just submit to it. If that task was insanely risky, Bahnsen led from in front, and he pays tribute to the 44 men who died under his command in a way that is by no means universal in military memoirs. With a preface by Norman Schwartzkopf, this is an autobiography that adds considerably to the serious military student's knowledge of the Vietnam War and of infantry leadership. The latter constitutes this book's particular distinction, for Bahnsen's brand of it positively influenced those of his subordinates who survived to lay the foundations of the more proficient U.S. infantry deployed in the two Iraq wars. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
