No Survivors

Manchester Center, VT: Marshall Jones Company, 1995. Presumed first edition/first printing. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. [16], 397, [3] pages. Map. Illustration. Glossary. Stamp on fep. War indelibly brands the minds of its participants and victims. Nothing exorcises war's psychological residue. In that very real sense, there are no survivors. That's the devastating premise set forth by Mike Sutton who spent three tours of duty as part of the relatively unknown Military Assistant Command/Vietnam. No Survivors follows three infantry advisors: Hunter Morgan, a 3-tour vet fighting a war his country is fighting against; Army Medic Henry Small Deer, a full-blooded Sioux, who'd rather fight than stitch; Jesse Edwards, a naive recruit with a hidden dark side and Samantha Crawford, an Army nurse working in primitive operating rooms and rural hospital wards. A spy has been planted in the advisors' team house and, as a result, the enemy is waiting at every turn. Only luck, skill and combat experience allow the advisors to survive the most inhuman ground assaults and bloody ambushes. Following an unthinkable climax, and in a brilliant piece of writing, the primary characters come to the bitter, painful realization that sometimes the life you give for your country...is not your own. This is a fact-based novel which contains graphic descriptions of violent acts and language that may be considered offensive To many Americans, the Vietnam War was simply a misdirected conflict between the United States and the communist forces in Southeast Asia. Technology allowed Vietnam to become Americans first TV war and the images beamed across the nation further warped our understanding of the hostilities half a world away. But, before there was any major build-up of American forces; before the war became a proving ground for various weapons systems; before the prime-time coverage and the public outcry, there were infantry advisors. Although their role was quickly eclipsed by the larger, all U.S. operations, their efforts continued throughout the war. First sent by President Eisenhower in the late fifties, the advisors were America's initial Vietnam anti. Their mission: train the South Vietnamese in self-defense, weapons systems, and tactics. Accompany them on combat operations against the communists to provide tactical guidance and, once contact with the enemy was established, advisors provided the primary communications link to coordinate air strikes, artillery fire missions and medical evacuations. In an attempt to make No Survivors as reader-friendly as possible, a glossary of common terms has been included in the back of the book. Every aspect of the Vietnam War deserves special attention. No Survivors may help those who weren't in Vietnam - and those who were - better understand a relatively little-known corner of the conflict, the role of the advisor.