Customer Reviews

Close Quarters

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I first read Mr. Heinemann's 'Close Quarters' in 1975, while on active duty with the USAF. It grabbed me by the throat with its first paragraph and didn't let go until the last sentence. The language, mood, and sense of no time but the present are dead on. From the hero's entrance as a 'Cherry' or 'FNG' to the time he's 'Short'. The story rolls like a tank and doesn't slow down. The one chapter dedicated to the New Year's Eve attack on Deadeye's firebase is one of the finest, most descriptive and detailed ever put to paper. Keeping up tension with each frightful second. Few writers have this ability. And though I've never experienced one, I experienced viscerally the chaos, tension, and stink of fear that a 'No S**t Firefight' encomapsses. I've many friends who went to South East Asia and can easily understand their reluctance to speak about their time there. I am forever grateful that Mr. Heinemann did. The stink, the heat and humidity, the fear and helplessness are all there. Wrapped in the confines of a fire base or M-113 APC. Martin Scorcese should do this as a film, since the screenplay would be the book and reader would become one of the the team. With Deadeye, Dewey, Whiskey J, Quinn, and the Lt. A voyeur, overhearing flawless, raw, pure from the gut dialog. Few books have such power. John Del Vecchio's '13th Valley', Dale A. Dye's 'Run Between the Raindrops', James Webb's 'Fields of Fire', and Gus Hasford's "Short Timers' are close. This is the real deal! Science fiction writer David Drake could take lessons from Mr. Heinemann, since they shared the same MOS. Infinitely readable. And re-readable. If you know anyone who experienced the war in Vietnam, or any war; buy and read this book! It might give you an idea of where that person is coming from.

In my opinion, this is simply a first class story written by an extremely gifted writer. If you have any interest in reading about Vietnam, about war in general, about men in extraordinary conditions you should enjoy this novel. I was sorry to finish it and look forward to reading more work by the author.

Larry Heinemann is one of our greatest writers and this book is an intense and painful trip into the hell of war. I could not put it down. Heinemann made me feel fear, anger and desperation at the insanity of war. He uses words like paint, piling detail upon detail until you are inside the story with him feeling rage at the waste of people's lives. Read it and weep. But read it if you love good writing.

From the red dust settling in the opening chapter, to the helpless feeling of rage while cursing a fallen brother, this book brought me back to my Nam experience. I could smell the same thick, musty air that is described , could almost feel it make my lungs ache. The horror of watching a friends life soak into the ground while you couldnt do any thing but lie to him about being alright. I would suggest this book to any saber rattler before the shooting started. Nam wasnt a great adventure, or a noble cause. It was 18 and 20 year old kids crying for thier mammas and pissing thier pants while they looked for thier legs. if you never read another book on Nam, read this one.

As an Englishman of 53 I did not serve in the US Military but was offered a position it that company when I was given the chance to work in the States back in the 60s. A few weeks after I had been to the US Embassy in London to discuss matters (such as time off US Military service for time already spent in the UK Reserve forces) I met the girl who became my wife and history (mine and Americas') was changed forever. When I went to The Vietnam Memorial in Washington with my wife and eledest girl, I stood there with tears in my eyes, thinking of what might have been. My daughter got hold of a copy of 'Close Quarters' (she is an English Teacher in a Secondary school) and I have just finished reading it...or should I say..experiencing it...and once again I have tears in my eyes. God Bless you Larry..and God Bless all the Quinns who never made it back.

I read this book while taking a course on the liturgy of war at U Mass Boston. The course was taught by a Marine Nam vet. I am also a Nam vet (9th Inf. and 11 Cav so when the auther described the rsd dust from the clay it brought me back (actually to somewhere I DID NOT WANT TO BE) This book is the most accurate that I have read.

I first read this book about 30 years ago and still have my ragged, dog-eared copy. I have re-read it many times; even knowing it almost by heart, it is still an engaging read. The climactic firefight and aftermath are so vividly described that you can picture them as if photographs accompanied the text. He captures the dirt, the heat, and the horror of jungle warfare. He also captures the boredom and pettiness of rear-area life.
I have read hundreds of books on military history, particularly Vietnam, and this is one of my top five. I'm not a fan of the big-picture overview, preferring the story of the down-and-dirty everyday grunt. This book is among the best ever to portray that existence.
A must-read for any fan of military history.

This is a review of the CD. Heinemann does a first-rate job of pulling you into the dirt and grime of everyday life on the front lines in Vietnam. Using the soldier's raw lingo, known only to those who were there, he rubs your face in the heat, pain, and futility of Washington's hopeless little war. It doesn't take long before you can smell the cordite, hear the screams and ache for some rest, smokes and booze. As a HouseCat in artillery at Ft. Sill from '63 till '65 I saw first hand the military's transition from a peace-time, good ole boys club, to the rat-hole where draftees were hustled off to the jungle to be forever corrupted emotionally and physically. I always wondered what it was like to be caught up in that kind of nightmare. What it was like to be one of the 10% who did 90% of the dying. Now I know. Vets have always been reluctant to discuss the war with anyone who hasn't seen the elephant. It's just too difficult to try to make the uninitiated understand, so why the f**k try? Heinemann's book makes that leap and bridges the gap. Richard Ferrone does a masterful job of reading the difficult prose. His tired, cynical, knowing voice puts you directly on the front line, right inside the stinking, rattling APC named the Cowcatcher that was Deadeye's home for a year. If you were ever curious about Vietnam, listen to this book.

Larry Heinemann arrived in Vietnam on St. Patrick's Day, 1967 and spent the next year living a nightmare that could only be imagined.

That is, until he put the sights, sounds, smells and other sensations down on paper in his first novel, "Close Quarters," published in 1977.

Heinemann would reach the highest level of acclaim for an American author ten years after that, when he won the National Book Award for his second novel, "Paco's Story," published in '86.

"CQ" starts on the first day of Philip 'Deadeye' Dosier's tour of duty and ends on his last, but what goes on in-between will profoundly affect its readers for the rest of their lives.

Heinemann carefully maintains that "CQ" is called "fiction" for a reason, and says that while he and Dosier share a good many things, the author knows a lot more about 'Deadeye' than 'Deadeye' knows about him.

For a check of facts vs. fiction, see Heinemann's masterful 2005 memoir, "Black Virgin Mountain: A Return to Vietnam."

In the meantime, be prepared for rough terrain while reading "CQ," which may be 'fictional,' but at no time any less than completely believable. It's easy to read, though difficult to take at times; mostly however, it's impossible to put down once you start.

This ain't "Rambo," this is the real deal, from one of America's living, writing legends!

In the literary realm of Vietnam, this work another of the masterpieces. The stories here ring authentic and passionate. The book follows a grunt whose self-examination is beyone many of the pieces written to date, but is true to the internal conflict of grunts in 'Nam. The book is a noteworthy example of the angst theat captured both those who fought, but those who stayed home.
Ron Lealos author of Don't Mean Nuthin'