Elusive Honor: A Post-Vietnam Trilogy [Paperback]

John Bartlett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 20, 2007

This post Vietnam memoir is not about war---It is about people-respect---and dignity; It is about finding peace---and restoring honor.Four years after the Vietnam War, the author met three Vietnam Era veterans. Since then, they have lived in the author's mind---coaxing, prodding, and haunting him for closure. Now, twenty-eight years later, he is telling their story.What follows is a rare insider's view of a Naval Discharge Review Board in action....with updated notes for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan War who may seek review of a discharge they feel was unjust.QUOTES OF INTEREST FROM READERSDr. Geoff Pope, Professor of EnglishNorthwest University:"A keen and compassionate memoir"This book is part of the Veteran's History Project at the Library of Congress. The LOC catalog nr is: LCCN 2008364019

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Elusive Honor is a first non-fiction book authored by retired US Navy Commander John Braxton Bartlett. John is a native of Grafton, West Virginia. He holds degrees from Alderson-Broaddus College (Philippi WV), and the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science. He received his Commission from Naval Officer Candidate School (Newport R.I.). His Navy Surface Warfare Officer career included assignments aboard USS Estes AGC-12, USS George Clymer APA-27, and USS Durham LKA-114. Tours of duty with these ships allowed for participation in the first Amphibious landing of US Combat Marines in Vietnam in 1965 and the last lift of US Combat Marines from Vietnam in 1972. CDR Bartlett participated in 7 of 19 combat campaign periods of the Vietnam War. He holds several decorations and foreign service ribbons and was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal by the Secretary of Defense for his service. Following military retirement, John pursued a federal government career attaining the grade of GS-15 with the nuclear weapons arm of the Department of Defense. He retired from Federal Service from the US Department of Energy having served as the DOE Site Representative at Johnston Atoll and as Branch Chief of a US-USSR Treaty Compliance Inspection Team. He later worked with State of Hawaii Civil Defense and in overseas defense contract management. John is now a retired federal contract consultant and an active disaster assistance volunteer for the American Red Cross and Washington/County Emergency Management Services. He is a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America, VFW, and the Military Officers Association of America. John and his wife Carol live in the Seattle Washington area.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (November 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1434329437
• ISBN-13: 978-1434329431
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #476,455 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Military Discharge Reviews, Memorial Day, National Cemeteries, November 29, 2007

By 

John Bartlett "John Braxton Bartlett" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Elusive Honor: A Post-Vietnam Trilogy (Paperback)

I am the author of this memoir which is a true account of three people who petitioned the Navy for review of their unfavorable discharge after the Vietnam War. I was a member of the Naval Discharge Review Board that heard and made decisions on each of their cases. This year I went online and reviewed current discharge review board procedures and read current case histories of unfavorable discharge reviews from IRAQ and AFGHANISTAN service. My experiences on the board and the content of the book "Elusive Honor" should provide a veteran or their family with both hope and a good process for applying for a discharge review. Even though this is a Vietnam memoir, the information provided is current, I hope it helps someone who believes they received an unjust or unfair discharge from military service.

This post Vietnam memoir is not about war---It is about people--respect---and dignity; It is about finding peace---and restoring honor. Four years after the Vietnam War during Board duty, I met three Vietnam Era veterans. Since then, they have lived in my mind---coaxing, prodding, and haunting me for closure. Now, twenty-eight years later, I told their story. "Elusive Honor" provides a rare insider's view of a Naval Discharge Review Board in action....with updated notes for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan War who may seek remedies for a discharge they feel was unjust.

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