Rites of Passage: Odyssey of a Grunt [Mass Market Paperback]

Robert Peterson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2001

A raw, powerful account of an infantryman’s life during wartime– complete with all the horrors and the heroism . . .

Robert Peterson arrived in Vietnam in the fall of 1966, a young American ready to serve his country and seize his destiny. What happened in that jungle war would change his life forever. Peterson vividly relives the tense patrols in the Viet Cong-infested Central Highlands, the fierce firefights along the Cambodian border, the ambushes and enemy charges. Daily he and his fellow grunts put their lives on the line, forced to follow orders blindly from higher-ups solely interested in reaping their personal glory.

Yet out of the deadly hell of Vietnam came a brotherhood–forged in blood and courage, sacrifice and survival–of men who continuously risked their lives for one another, whatever the odds. Rites of Passage is a shining testament to their valor.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

A raw, powerful account of an infantryman?s life during wartime? complete with all the horrors and the heroism . . .

Robert Peterson arrived in Vietnam in the fall of 1966, a young American ready to serve his country and seize his destiny. What happened in that jungle war would change his life forever. Peterson vividly relives the tense patrols in the Viet Cong-infested Central Highlands, the fierce firefights along the Cambodian border, the ambushes and enemy charges. Daily he and his fellow grunts put their lives on the line, forced to follow orders blindly from higher-ups solely interested in reaping their personal glory.

Yet out of the deadly hell of Vietnam came a brotherhood?forged in blood and courage, sacrifice and survival?of men who continuously risked their lives for one another, whatever the odds. Rites of Passage is a shining testament to their valor.

About the Author

Robert Peterson grew up near the town of Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin. In the fall of 1966 he joined the army and was sent to Vietnam where he saw combat as an infantryman. A series of promotions saw Peterson rise to the rank of staff sergeant. In August 1967, he was seriously wounded by friendly fire from American gunships, leaving him a paraplegic. Robert Peterson passed away in 1994.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st Ballantine Books ed edition (August 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345446941
• ISBN-13: 978-0345446947
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,508,769 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars why was this not a bestseller?, May 19, 2002

By 

ron smith (memphis, tn United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rites of Passage: Odyssey of a Grunt (Mass Market Paperback)

one of the best memoirs i have read on the vietnam war.
maybe even one of the best books i have ever read.
peterson's daily account of his vietnam experience is meticulously described,providing a view of his metamorphosis from an average midwestern farm boy to combat-weary grunt that is brilliant. reads more like a novel in the sense that the character in the first few chapters could not even fathom the feelings,thoughts, and experiences of the character at the end.
also provides compelling illustrations of the frustrations and inner conflicts felt by an average american required to follow orders which he is morally opposed to and intuitively wary of.
the book grows darker by the page and the reader is drawn into his sense of impending doom and constant fear.
i highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the vietnam war.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'll never smile again, December 21, 2002

By 

P. Kelley "Jake Kelley" (Quincy, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rites of Passage: Odyssey of a Grunt (Audio Cassette)

An incredibly detailed, truthful, moving, and painful personal account of war as experienced by a front line soldier in the Vietnam War.
This book was obviously written from extensive notes taken by the author when he had the time in the field to write down his feelings and experiences. For reasons of his own, the book was not published until after his death in April 1994.
This book will have immense meaning to anyone who has experienced the hell of war, as well as, anyone who wishes to understand the sacrifices our fighting men and women in battle must endure. President Bush and his top advisors should read this book before they send our treasured youth to fight another war. If those in positions of highest political authority, after reading Sgt. Peterson's war memoir, still decide we must go to war then they will understand we must fight the war to the finish with the best military tactics and strategies available not hindered and defined by vague political considerations.
I recommend this book to all. I sincerely thank Mr. and Mrs. Peterson for their service to our country.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've ever read, January 23, 2002

By 

"abujan93" (Edmonton, AB Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rites of Passage: Odyssey of a Grunt (Mass Market Paperback)

Robert Peterson takes you with him as he recounts his experiences as a GI in Vietnam. Peterson paints a vivid picture of what life was really like in the Nam. The hell of marching day after day, fighting the elements while searching for the elusive VC. Never knowing where you'll be heading to next. Forming bonds stronger than blood and then watching those men die, and then getting up to do it all over again the next day. It was a real eye opener for me, fighting in Vietnam was nothing like I expected, not like the movies at all. It all seemed so pointless. The more you read the darker it gets.

This is one of the best books I've ever read. I took it everywhere I went and I had trouble putting it down. Robert Peterson was an amazing writer and Rites of Passage was an amazing book.