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by George Uhl.
Hardback (6.3×9.3 inches). 141 pages. 2025.
Subtitle: Stories of a Marine Corps Radioman in the Vietnam War
This memoir of a Marine who carried a radio during a combat tour in Vietnam uses a framework of letters to convey the stress of combat. These letters were never actually sent home because he didn’t want to alarm his family, so consider them more like diary entries. Letters by his friend and fellow radioman Paul Reed that were sent to the Reed home are also included.
Not much is about basic training at Parris Island, but he picks up his duties on cruises to the Mediterranean, Dominican Republic, and other spots. One interesting bit is about being sent to Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training run by British commandos. It was as realistic as possible without the torture (p42-p43).
The description about the battle for Hill 488 (p59-p60) may make for a good optional scenario rule. When the Marines ran low on ammo, they threw rocks at the VC. The VC thought they were grenades and popped up to be easy targets for rifle fire.
His friend, Reed, died during combat and Uhl later found out that the NVA offered the equivalent of $700 to a soldier who killed a radioman (p75). Uhl’s several brushes with death and the luck that allowed him to mostly come out unscathed are well described in the book.
One of the funnier anecdotes: The US military formed Combined Action Companies (CAC) consisting of a rifle squad and medic to live in a village with ARVN as part of counter-insurgency strategy (p95). The program name was later changed to Combined Action Program (CAP) because “CAC” is Vietnamese for “male generative organ” (p96).
The book contains 45 black and white photos and one black and white illustration.
It reads quick and offers another interesting memoir of patrol action in the jungles of Vietnam.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
