First published 1985
A dozen Marines arrive in a Vietnamese village with an unconventional mission. Instead of launching search and destroy operations, they must teach local farmers how to protect themselves from Viet Cong attacks. The Marines face skeptical villagers who have survived by avoiding conflict with both sides. As the Americans work to build trust and train a militia, they discover that winning hearts and minds proves more complex than any battlefield strategy. The villagers must choose between the safety of neutrality and the risks of resistance. The Marines find themselves questioning their own assumptions about warfare and the people they came to help. This experimental program tests whether American advisors can transform farmers into fighters and whether military solutions can address the deeper conflicts tearing Vietnam apart.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, military-fiction, adventure, action
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Vietnam
Period: 20th-century
320 pages · Paperback · Univ of Wisconsin Pr
Content warnings: violence