This is a novel about a West Virginia character, Augie Cumpton, serving in Vietnam who is freaked out by superior officers who he feels are making criminal demands upon him and who he fears are capable of relying upon friendly fire to resolve conflicts. Ample flashbacks to West Virginia family and friends flesh out the war scenes. The author, John H. Brown, is a West Virginia native who served in Vietnam and took to novel-writing after a career in public relations and journalism in his home state. “One of the most powerful novels I’ve yet read on the Vietnam War. As a veteran of that awful conflict, I was absolutely riveted by the tale of Augie and his buddies, and every word rang true.” – Homer Hickam.
Castroville, Texas: Black Rose Writing, 2018. 230 pages. Trade paperback