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Ears of the Jungle

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The novel begins on a mountain peak in Annam. The Jarai villagers hear the bombing attack on the nearby Ho Chi Minh Trail. Will it frighten away wild game? In Hanoi Madame Ngha, head of the intelligence service for the Democratic Republic, received news about an Air Force base in Thailand from a well-placed agent. They will use sensors to pick up sound in the jungle, like ears. Chapter 4 describes how the Ho Chi Minh trail worked. Accurate bombing shows something has changed. A meeting with the Jarai chief leads to new knowledge.

In Part II the "ears of the jungle" pick up sounds of the jungle at night. They hear more crickets than usual. Then other sounds. What's going on? Finally noises from a motor. The general orders a bombing attack on this extremely rugged mountainous region. [Is this too good to be true?] What effect did this have on supplies? What if they dropped napalm to burn and destroy the jungle? Can bad be transformed into good?

In time biological poisons were used, their euphemistic name was "defoliants". It killed trees, bushes, grass, and the animals that lived in the jungle. Can good be derived from this cleared land? Was biological warfare cost-effective? If computers control the selection of targets can there ever be a mistake? "Garbage in, garbage out" goes the saying because the computer is never wrong.

Boulle has written a fast-paced imaginative story. Its irony may be too much for some readers. Why did Thu disobey orders? So Boulle could show that there is always the unexpected in any plan? [I think Thu acted to preserve the secrecy of her activities.]