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Vietnam Stories: A Judge's Memoir [Hardcover]

Jack Crouchet (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)


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Book Description

October 1997
Complex stories of war-time bravery, brutality, compassion, and futility can be found in Vietnam Stories: A Fudge's Memoir. Jack Crouchet, retired U.S. Army Colonel and former military judge, brings to life a controversial picture of Americans and Vietnamese in Vietnam during the war years of 1968-1969. Crouchet's unique position as military judge made him privy to the stories and lives of American soldiers, Vietnamese people, and the U.S. non-military residents who appeared before his court. Though not a book of war stories per se, Vietnam Stories provides a unique overview of that historical time and includes the author's reflections on the politics of the Vietnam war.

A strange culture was created by the war in Vietnam. While twelve percent of military personnel were involved in actual combat, many civilians and high-ranking military persons lived in luxury in Saigon. They were furnished with airconditioned villas, apartments, and hotels; ate in exquisite French restaurants; and traveled in comfort. The Vietnam experience of youthful American combat soldiers was one of constant danger as well as confrontation with situations that many were unprepared to deal with. Well-armed and often immature, the soldiers sometimes made decisions which led to tragedy. Finally, there were the farmers of Vietnam, who wanted nothing more than to remain in their fields near the tombs of their ancestors.

"Those who have served in or have visited Vietnam will find much in their experiences to relate to in the pages of Vietnam Stories". -- Eugene F. Murrett, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit


Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

A straightforward look back at a former US Army judge's trials in the Vietnam War. Retired colonel Crouchet offers a two-faceted memoir. About half the book is devoted to a sort of traveler's catalogue of meals eaten, rooms slept in, sights seen, and personalities encountered throughout the former Republic of Vietnam from July 1968 to July 1969, the height of the American war. The other half, and by far the stronger, is devoted to details--including several long transcripts--of many courts-martial over which the author presided. Crouchet did see a side of the Vietnam War that is not often portrayed in memoirs. He stayed in his share of air-conditioned hotel rooms and officers' quarters. He ate his share of fancy French food in Saigon's chi-chi restaurants. He put away more than a few drinks with more than a few generals, young American women, and visiting celebrities. The war was raging all around him, but Crouchet's recounting of his leisure-time activities reads like a kindly grandfather's self-effacing retelling of a mildly adventurous stay in a far-off, exotic land. Another problem with the personal narration: Crouchet uses lots of detailed, reconstructed dialogue that often does not ring true. His trial recapitulations, on the other hand, are well and fully told. They include insightful analyses of the motives of the men who were charged with serious crimes. Also in the positive category are Crouchet's introspective explanations of his generally dovish views on the war and his placing in perspective the murders and rapes that make up a good part of the book with the positive behavior of the overwhelming majority of Americans who were sent to fight in Vietnam. A workmanlike effort that reveals a not-often-examined aspect of the Vietnam War. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 232 pages
  • Publisher: University Press of Colorado; 1st Edition edition (October 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0870814532
  • ISBN-13: 978-0870814532
  • Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,513,991 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars I was there too, August 15, 2007
By 
JAGC Vet (San Francisco) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Vietnam Stories: A Judge's Memoir (Hardcover)
I served in the Army JAGC during the time Lt. Col. Crouchet was a Military Judge and tried cases over which he presided. Col. Crouchet's recollections fit his view of the war and its participants. Not to say the events recounted didn't occur, only that they have been described as Col. Crouchet saw them. Others might place different emphasis on many of those events, and many would, I think, include telling events he omitted.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The only title by a US Military Judge who served in Viet Nam, November 3, 1997
By A Customer
This review is from: Vietnam Stories: A Judge's Memoir (Hardcover)
The book covers areas that were widely discussed in the media at the time that they occurred. The Long Binh riots, murder & rape at the Americal division, the commanding officer who demanded a body count and a discussion of project 100K, which allowed soldiers to enter the military service who were not otherwise qualified. Also included are scenes from Saigon where high ranking civilians and military lived a life of luxury.
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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Personal Account, September 22, 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: Vietnam Stories: A Judge's Memoir (Hardcover)
Senseless violence, inexplicable rages, and bad judgment make up the very personal hell described in this memoir. These are...deeply personal accounts of the soldiers...as told by an author with 26 years of experience in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps.
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