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Sunday, September 1, 2013

Papa Bravo Romeo: Navy Patrol Boats at War in Vietnam (Wynn Goldsmith)

A week ago I finished reading another book related to the Vietnam War. I saw Wynn Goldsmith's Papa Bravo Romeo in Booksale a few months ago and even deliberated on whether to purchase or not since I still have a mountain of unread books at home (bibliophile's dilemma tsk). Since I greatly enjoyed The Tunnels of CuChi I ended up leaving the store with the book.

The book is a personal memoir about river warfare during the Vietnam War. While I don't find it exactly engaging, I gained a few insights after reading the book. There's naturally the hardships suffered, the usual politics in army hierarchy, the occasional musings on vacations, stories about comrades, etc., but the book is sadly lacking in the author's own views on the Vietnam War. He doesn't mention anything that shows his justifications for the war. The only thing that mattered is to stay alive and to defeat the Viet Congs whom they consider as the enemy. There was no reflections on how the American army was perceived by the Viet Congs, or anything like that. So in the end, the book is largely boring and too self-centered.

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