These Good Men; Friendships Forged from War

New York: Crown Publishers, Inc, 1989. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. Sherry Lenehan (Author photograph). 24 cm. [10], 310 pages. Illustrations. End Notes. Index. Michael Norman wrote THESE GOOD MEN: Friendships Forged in War, a memoir published to critical acclaim in 1990. Norman traveled halfway around the world to rekindle memories and rediscover old friends who survived a lethal ambush at a forgotten bridge in Vietnam. He is a former reporter and columnist for The New York Times national, foreign and metropolitan desks and was the inaugural writer for the following New York Times columns: "A Sense of Place", a monthly column that explored the dislocations of modern life in one suburban town; "Lessons", a national column on education; and "Our Towns", a twice-weekly column on life outside New York City. Norman's work also includes major articles for various other national publications, including The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine and GQ Magazine. His work has been syndicated both here and abroad. Derived from a Kirkus review: A former New York Times reporter and columnist, Norman set out in 1984 to track down a small group of his Vietnam buddies. All these former Marines have in common is their survival of a deadly fight at Bridge 28 on the Quang Tri River in April 1968. Norman looks up his comrades one by one: there are reunions of three or four men at a time, culminating in a larger gathering in the spring of 1985. As he finds and meets with each man and his family, Norman also recounts the events of that day at the bridge and provides a quasi-oral history of the Vietnam conflict and the resultant effect on the lives of these men. The process is also one of self-discovery and therapy as Norman comes to terms with his own Vietnam experience. Meanwhile, some of the men still suffer the agony of terrible wounds and continue to need medical attention; all struggle with the emotional and psychological conflict associated with the Vietnam vet. This is an affecting account.