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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Book Review,
This review is from: Potawatomi Tracks: The Ballad of Vietnam and Other Stories (Paperback)
"Right when I thought I had pretty much read everything there was to be read about the Vietnam War from the soldier's/veteran's perspective, a small manila envelope found it's way to my door. As it turns out, there were some things I had failed to learn.This isn't an easy book to read. It is painfully easy to follow, but it sure isn't easy to look at. What I mean to say is that, is there anyone who likes to look at their own skeletons in the closet? Not me. But it is something we all have to do if we ever plan to get anywhere in this world. I shall ask Mr. Mitchell's forgiveness in advance if I speak incorrectly of his past. It is not my intent to do anything but shed light on the plight of the Native American Vietnam veteran. They are rarely spoken of, written about or honored. These men are all bigger people than I. If my grandfathers had their hair cut off, land and language stolen from them, I am not sure if I would be so eager to serve a government that had done this. I sometimes hear people ask, "Why don't the Indians just get over it? That was a long time ago." My answer would be, they have. They have fought and died for this country since before this country even had its own name. It seems odd to me that despite a man's heritage, he can be expected to lay his life down in a foreign land, maybe even for a foreign cause, but in his very own homeland, he is not honored for that sacrifice. That is so disrespectful and sad. Those are some of the reasons this book is so difficult to read. And that, like it or not, it isn't so easy to "move on" or to "get over it." There are many scars a man can possess. A bullet wound will heal, ask a soldier with a Purple Heart. It may even be worth a good story or two. Scars on the forearm from jungle rot will make people gasp, but it doesn't hurt the veteran anymore. But there are some scars on the inside that, try as you might, you can't get to them, you can't bandage them or suture them. You can't blow them up, you can't ignore them, you can't outflank them and you can't run from them. They become part of you: in a way, they are you. Then the question becomes "How do you live your life with the person you have been made to be?" The author speaks with great eloquence of this. He seems to have few regrets about serving his country, and yet one can barely hesitate when asking why? He has been ignored, taunted, refused and mistreated. What would you do if the tables were reversed? That is your big question. Would you be able to rise above it? Would you sink beneath that burden? I was halfway through the book when I thought I could not continue, I did not want to find out what happened to the author on the breakneck pace of self-destruction he was on. I figured someone else must have finished writing the book for him, for surely he was in prison or dead. He is neither. Please read on if you hit the middle ground, as I did. The ending will touch your heart. The author looks you square in the eyes, as is the way of any honorable man, and he never lets his eyes blink through the entire book. It made me want to look away, to cry in shame, anger and want to have met this man back then to prove not all people are like many that he had met. I wanted to tell him that people don't treat veterans that way in Oregon. That he would have had it better here. But I don't really know that, do I? Maybe I see things from the eyes of a person who has always had the door opened for me, always had options, never been afraid to sleep for fear of what my mind would do while I tried to escape into slumber. I am safe because of the sacrifices men like Mr. Mitchell have made. I have always been safe. Maybe that is why I felt so helpless reading this book. It just didn't feel right. I was left unsettled. But maybe that is the purpose of some things in life. Shake people up now and then. Challenge some of their notions, shake their ivory towers, maybe some of us will fall out and jog some sense back into our heads. It should not matter to me or you if the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago or 30 minutes ago. The fact is that millions served, thousands sacrificed all that they had, their lives, souls, minds, arms and legs. I have given them nothing in return. What have you given them? A parade? A job when they needed one? A swift kick in the teeth? A hand? I don't know what you are going to do, but I can make a suggestion. Read this book. Then think about it for a while. Then decide if there isn't some little something you owe a veteran you know. I know what I am going to do. I shall start off by writing Larry Mitchell a letter of appreciation. I think I shall also make him a batch of cookies - every soldier needs a box of cookies in the mail." -Joni Bour
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A landmark work!,
By
This review is from: Potawatomi Tracks: The Ballad of Vietnam and Other Stories (Paperback)
Potawatomi poet and Vietnam veteran Larry Mitchell takes us on a harrowing journey fraught with danger and drug addiction during his tour of duty in Vietnam and afterwards. The cover photo of Mitchell and his fellow GIs reveals the strong bonds that formed as they endured life under fire, endless days of tedium in the mud and jungles, and tension broken by sudden attacks from an unseen enemy. Some survived, but damaged. Others never came home. "Potawatomi Tracks" is one man's personal record, yet it rings with universal truths.In strong cadences and vivid images, Mr. Mitchell tells of his struggles with PTSD, drug addiction, and aimlessness as well as poverty as he returned to civilian life on the reservation and later spent time stationed in Germany. Now married with two grown sons, he teaches writing, secure in his tribal community and visions for the future. Ultimately, his story becomes a testament of spiritual survival and the healing power of the drum. "Potatawomi Tracks" does more than educate us and touch the heart. These poems bridge a cultural gap and issue yet another challenge to our government to pay heed to voices from Indian country. This book belongs in homes and libraries everywhere. It's ironic that Native Americans have always loyally served our country overseas, only to be treated as second-class citizens back home. From the code talkers of World War II to soldiers who've died in Iraq such as Navajo mother Lori Piestawa, Indians have fought and died for America. Surely they deserve the recognition that other veterans receive.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A differnet kind of Vietnam War Book,
By W. H. McDonald Jr. "The American Author Assoc... (Elk Grove, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Potawatomi Tracks: The Ballad of Vietnam and Other Stories (Paperback)
I read Larry's personal account of his tour of duty several years ago. I was moved then by how unique and profoundly different his prose chronicled his own actual personal experiences. This is so much different than other veteran accounts. It reflects a cultural and spiritual dimension not seen in so many other memoirs.If you think you understand all that happened to us Vietnam veterans--this will open up new portals to understanding that have not been touched on by any one else. It is truly a personalized but universal life experience that will take the reader on a journey of the heart. This should be on your list of books to read about the Vietnam War. A truly riveting read!
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