Review: Well-done, Mr. Enoch!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 28, 2012
A Year in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne: 1969-1970 joins the growing catalogue of books about the Vietnam War, and more specifically, about the year in the life of a grunt. Though Vietnam veterans such as Tim O'Brien or more recently John Podlaski have written about the same subject, what makes Enoch's book worth reading is the way he has written it: in the form of a journal.Though some reviewers have criticized him for all the "listing" he does (similar to O'Brien's opening story in The Things They Carried) and the things he carried, that was one of the things I liked most about the book. I liked the way how he described coping with being in the war and far away from home--even if it was describing the goodies in his latest "care package" from home.(Having lived in Asia for twenty three years as well as two years in the Air Force in Panama, I could relate to the importance of those packages from home.)Additionally, he takes time out to provide a commentary on the war from his point of view in the field as well as commenting on Vietnam and her people. Then there are the snapshots he took which add another colorful dimension to this book.Though the book might lack the gritty, riveting, and visceral combat descriptions that comprise other books on the conflict, I found Enoch's book a thoroughly enjoyable and interesting read.Thank you for your service Mr. Enoch and this book.Jeffrey Miller,Author of War Remains