A Hundred Miles of Bad Road: An Armored Cavalryman in Vietnam, 1967-68 [Hardcover]

Dwight W. Birdwell (Author), Keith William Nolan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1997

Dwight Birdwell's sixteen months in combat in Vietnam were a mirror of the larger war effort.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...it will be looked back on a hundred years from now as defining what that war was like." -- The Thornton Literary Agency, LLC, October, 1997

"...the book should be read by every American seeking insight on the 'lessons of Vietnam.'" -- The Daily Oklahoman, June 1, 1998

A Hundred Miles of Bad Road was "Star" rated in the review published on August 25, 1997. -- Publishers Weekly, August 25, 1997

Best Biography Award of 1998. -- Society of Midland Authors, Chicago, Illinois, June, 1998

The collaboration of a good soldier and a good writer produces a Vietnam memory that is better than good. -- American Library Association, September, 1997

Product Details

• Hardcover: 218 pages
• Publisher: Presidio Press (June 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891416285
• ISBN-13: 978-0891416289
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #749,214 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Birdwell At The .50, May 29, 2002

By 

Joe L. Sloan (Paducah, KY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Hundred Miles of Bad Road: An Armored Cavalryman in Vietnam 1967-68 (Paperback)

I had no contact with Dwight Birdwell or the 3/4 Cav for 33 years, but the book took me back to Highway 1 last week. Accurate and truthful are the events and people (not the case in too many war memoirs). The photos are real troopers who got bloody. Even the dates were interesting for sorting memories.

One of my most vivid memories of the war had been Birdwell on a burning tank firing a .50 caliber machine gun until it glowed in the night, and his silhouette carrying out the badly wounded. That memory is in the book (Chapter 19) and accurate to the number of RPG's fired.

The lifers, loafers, heros, and base camp warriors are there also, warts and all. Read Tennyson for the glory of the cavalry, read Birdwell for the real thing.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Hundred Miles of Bad Road, April 23, 2001

By 

David M. Dowdell "DAVE - ULEO" (Westerville, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Hundred Miles of Bad Road: An Armored Cavalryman in Vietnam 1967-68 (Paperback)

I've been a big fan of Keith William Nolan for quite some time. I read The Battle For Saigon with interest because I was a member of the 377th Security Police Squadron USAF that was given the task of defending Tan Son Nhut Airbase. I took part in the defense of the airbase during Tet 68. I read One Hundred Miles of Bad Road, after reading The Battle For Saigon, and finally realized just what Troop B, 3/4 CAV endured out on Highway One outside the west perimeter. The tenacity of the 25th INF and the leadership Lt. Col. Otis and Captain Virant was instrumental in thwarting the sustained ground attack by seven NVA/VC Regiments. This is an accurate account of the battle in and around Tan Son Nhut Airbase. I highly recommend this book.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A compelling account of Vietnam combat, June 30, 2000

By 

C. Thornton "chazt" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Hundred Miles of Bad Road: An Armored Cavalryman in Vietnam 1967-68 (Paperback)

Dwight Birdwell and William Nolan have produced a very good personal account of an armored crewman's 16-month tour in Vietnam. In addition to absorbing combat narratives, Birdwell provides a lot of details and context to help readers understand his story. He gives explicit reasons why his unit's morale and performance deteriorated over his tour, and how the Tet Offensive changed the nature of the war. I highly recommend this book to any student of the military or the Vietnam War. U.S. military officers should read it for examples of how good leadership can inspire a unit, and bad leadership can cost lives. Birdwell highlights the role of good, solid NCOs as the beating heart of a military unit.