Firefight [Hardcover]

Joseph Ferrandino (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1987

Firefight is the story of a company of young soldiers, their idealistic, theater-nurtured vision of the glories of war torn away by the reality of Vietnam. Devastating not only for its realism but also for its sincerity.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When Corporal Amaro meets First Sgt. Henry Fluett of C Company, 101st Airborne, he knows he is in trouble. Amaro is a wise guy from Brooklyn, and Fluett is a hard-nosed "lifer" of the old school. This novel about combat in Vietnam should appeal to enlisted men who served in the Army during the '60s and early '70s. For one thing, the language is spot-on; two decades later, it's downright spooky to read about deuce-and-a-halfs, dust offs, hats-up and steel pots. More importantly, Ferrandino depicts both the official war between the Americans and ARVN and NVA/VC, and the unofficial conflict between the single-hitch enlisted men and the "lifer" cadre of career commissioned and noncommissioned officerswho all too often tried to disguise their incompetence with John Wayne rhetoric and "discipline" that amounted to hazing the troops. Ferrandino's version of the Vietnam War is a usefully astringent corrective to the current romantic Rambo cult. His narrative has the crude power of an attempt to exorcize a real-life nightmare.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Amaro is a young soldier on the line in Vietnam. His days and nights are filled with battle, disease, dope, destruction, death, and learning to survive. Individuals drift in and out of his life but most are only names, and those who are more die. While the assaults of enemy and nature are relentless, those of certain higher-ups in the chain of command are even more agonizing to Amaro. Part of his survival depends on coping with at least one of these men. Tough, sad, frustrating, this first novel by a former Vietnam infantryman is another grim view of a terrible ordeal. Robert H. Donahugh, P.L. of Youngstown and Mahoning Cty. , Ohio
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 196 pages
• Publisher: Soho Press; 1st edition (September 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0939149095
• ISBN-13: 978-0939149094
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,592,563 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This is one of the best books ever written., November 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Firefight (Hardcover)

A brilliant, personal piece of literature

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Firefight, January 26, 2000

By 

Pelley Scrofani (Canajoharie, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firefight (Hardcover)

Ferrandino's oracular insight and prophetic knowledge of Vietnam almost outweigh his estimable literary talents. The author is amazing!

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping and Sincere!!!, June 20, 2009

By 

Patten Leather "Heather Campbell" (Oneida, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firefight (Hardcover)

From the moment Amaro set out on his journey into the craziness of the Vietnam Conflict the reader is immediately captured. The realism of Ferrandino's work is astounding making this one of the best books written about the front-line experience. Not only is FIREFIGHT a wonderful
literary work of art, the author is a true American hero. Thank you Joseph Ferrandino for your service in the armed forces and to America and thank you for being the BEST english professor ever.

Patten Leather