Customer Reviews

Of Their Own Accord

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I have just finished reading Gary Dolan's book, "Of Their Own Accord". I found the reading to be realistic, factual and to the point. It carries the reader from day 1 to 365, of a young Lieutenant's life in the horrors of the Vietnam War. It further depicts the honesty, loyalty and devotion one man can feel for his fellow soldier, particularly in highly "elite" units as the U.S. Army Rangers. I was an instructor at both the Airborne and Ranger Departments of the United States Army Infantry school at Fort Benning, Georgia. In 1966 through 1967, I was a soldier assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade's 1st Batallion and subsequently their Long Range Patrol or "LRP" unit. My third (3rd) and final tour of duty in combat was with the 2nd platoon of Company "C" Ranger 75th Infantry Airborne in Vietnam in late 1970 and mid 1971.

I know Gary Dolan; he was my platoon leader. His platoon sergeant and I both came from instructor duties with the Ranger department at Fort Benning. The book is real. The missions were real. If there is a young man out there that intends to become a young Lieutenant or team leader in today's Army Rangers, they need to read this book. "RAMBO" was fiction, this is real. As we say in the South, this is the way it "T-I-S".

I finished reading the book around midnight. I immediately went into my 17 year old son's bedroom and kissed him on the forehead. It woke him up, and he ask, "Dad", what's that for?" "That's for Lieutenant Dolan, son. If it had not been for him, I would not be here and you would not be here."

I strongly recommend this book. It is action packed. It is true. It was written by a very, very good man who just happens to be a West Point officer in the Untied States Army.

Based on real incidents, this is a quintessential Vietnam war novel about the role Army Ranger units played conducting raids by small teams on the ground and directed and supported by their officers in the air. This book tracks the experiences of a young West Point graduate who volunteers for a Ranger unit in-country, learns his trade, takes care of his men, accomplishes his missions, and deals with a macho posturing, cowardly martinet of a company commander. The young officer's thoughts and emotions while coping with these challenges and his longings for the young wife left behind in the States are aptly represented.



The author does a superlative job of presenting a setting in which the reader can easily experience the jungle, understand the challenges of accurate map reading over a sea of green jungle canopy, while directing troops on the ground, calling in artillery strikes, and air-to-ground fire support. Mr. Dolan was there and did that, and it shows. We rated his book five hearts.

I read Gary's book, "Of Their Own Accord," in the fall of 2004. Gary and I were West Point classmates (Class of '69), we went thru Airborne, Ranger and Infantry Officer Basic together at Ft. Benning, and I was his best man at his wedding. After his wedding we only saw each other twice in 30-some years; once in Saigon in 1971 and once in the late '70s when he came out to California on a business trip. Then in the summer of 2004 we made contact again, via a WP class email list, and he sent me and advance electronic "pdf" copy of his book, asking me to read it and give him my opinion. I printed it out at work, because it took almost a full ream of 8.5x11 inch paper to print out, put a couple of rubber bands around it, and then proceeded to read it a lunch every day down in a large cafeteria in our office complex. Well, all the other hundreds of regulars down there probably thought I was a very concientious worker, always bringing what looked like a very think document to lunch every day to pore over. What they did not know was that I was reading one heck of a story, based on Gary's real life experiences as a Ranger platoon leader in Vietnam, circa 1970-1971. And what a story...! Gary had what could arguably be one of the most interesting, demanding and dangerous tours of duty any Infantry lieutenant could have had in Vietnam. As a Ranger platoon leader he was responsible for six recon teams: he sometimes personally went out with them "on the ground" on missions, often flew over them in a little military version of a Piper Cub where he was "the man," listening to five radios almost simultaneuously, directiy helicopters troopships and gunships, USAF jet fighters, US Army artillery mission, even on one occasion a fire mission from a US Navy battleship..! And doing all this from the back seat of a very small and vulnerable kite of a plane, which was bobbing and weaving around in the sky dodging enemy ground fire... But his book is more than tales of derring do, it is also about leadership, about looking after your men, leading by example, doing the right thing in very dangerous circumstances... In short, Gary's conduct as Ranger platoon leader epitomized both the motto of West Point, "Duty, Honor, Country," and the Ranger motto "Sua Sprente" (Of Their Own Accord"... Gary marched to the sound of the guns, accomplished the mission and cared for and took care of his men

This book gives a detailed portrait of the role of the US Rangers in Vietnam, written by someone who lived it. It not only gives us the "war story," but in very human terms tells about the fears, anxieties (as well as the shortcomings) of the men involved. It is a book with a unique perspective that should be read by all Americans.

"My Brother, my brother---here is some more infantry blue for YOU!! Great dadgummed read. I felt like I was along, actually there, on each mission... You captured the blood, guts, glory, fear, and character of our guys that was not too painful or boastful concerning our mission, style of warfare, and way of life...I would follow YOU into hell and tell the devil to turn up the heat!! CHARLIE RANGERS Lead The Way! Sua Sponte! Your Friend and Combat Brother, GRN

Gary R. Norsworthy
Team Leader, Co C (Ranger), 75th infantry (Airborne)

As a Vietnam veteran, I found Gary Dolan's book to be totally accurate to what I know of Vietnam, and our roll there. Having also been an Airborne Ranger, I am blown away to see the same war as the one I fought, from the officers perspective, not only worrying about one's own life, but having the added burden of the men's lives serving under you. War is dangerous, but as enlisted man, I can personally attest to the importance of having someone qualified to be in a leadership position. From reading Gary's book, I believe he was qualified for leadership, and I am also pleasantly surprised that he doesn't hold back in his feelings of his fellow officers that he felt were less than qualified.

All the way sir. Good read.

"Of Their Own Accord" by Gary Dolan is a great read, a great war story. Those of us who were veterans (Korea, Air Force) knew the attacks against our returning Vietnam veterans were wrong and shameful. This book brings vividly to life the incredible bravery of the men of the Charlie Rangers and shows why they deserve the respect and gratitude of a grateful nation. Lt. Dolan depicts a war run by inteligent men, highly skilled in the arts of war. Rangers made thousands of assaults behind enemy lines. That is amazing.

"Of Their Own Accord" allows you to feel like you are there, looking over our soldiers and catching your breath at every moment. In every war throughout history certain men stand out. We call them the bravest of the brave. Count Charlie Rangers in that league.

Great book. Written as fiction so the whole truth could be told. Forthright portrayal of a Ranger company in Vietnam by a veteran who took his lessons at West Point to heart.

Outstanding as a story of how an officer should lead men in combat. I recommend this book to every newly minted military officer and any one else who seeks the quintessential definition of good leadership.

John Reid, 173d Airborne Brigade (Sep) RVN 67-68 & 70, 101st Airborne Division RVN 68-69 & 71

Newly married and fresh out of school, Joe Dunn finds that instead of a year of familial intimacy and family comfort, he will be enduring three hundred and sixty-five days of jungle warfare in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam where one wrong move will get you impaled on bamboo spikes, covered with leeches, and hunted by strangers trying very hard to kill you. Joe Dunn is one of the elite long range fighters known as "Charlie Rangers of the American 75th Infantry. Of Their Own Accord gives the reader as close to a real feel for what went on in the jungles of Vietnam as can be had by anyone who wasn't actually there themselves. This is because back then, author Gary Dolan was Lieutenant Gary Dolan, Platoon Leader, 2nd Platoon Company C (Airborne), 75th Infantry (Rangers) and draws upon his first hand experiences and personal memories to breath life (and death) into his characters and the events that were an intimate part of a year in the life of an Airborne Ranger during the height of America's longest and least popular war of the 20th Century. A truly riveting read from beginning to end, Of Their Own Accord is an impressive literary creation and a superbly crafted work of novelized military history.

Mr. Dolan puts you in the mind and heart of a Ranger fighting in Vietnam..You become one with (1LT) Joseph Dunn a West Pointer heading for the adventure of his life. Behind enemy lines Dunn and his fellow Rangers fight alone relying on each other to stay alive. A true Rangers story...You won't find this kind of action on the screen..This book is a winner!