Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of the U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam by David Hackworth

Vietnam in the spring of 1969

Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of the U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam by Col. (Retired) David H. Hackworth and his wife Eilhys England. The book is about David Hackworth. It is a memoir about his time in Vietnam in the spring of 1969.

He embodies both the best and the worst of US Army officers. He is a hard-charging, mission-oriented, and motivated officer. He demands excellence from the men under his command. He suffers the hardships they do. He is also quite egotistical and hubris can describe his self-confidence that borders on an attitude of self-love.

9th Division, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry

The book is about the U.S. Army’s 9th Division, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam. This book is about Hackworth's transformation of what he viewed as a combat-ineffective battalion of draftees that he leads into a solid American fighting unit.

The story is a good case study of leadership. The descriptions of combat operations contained in the book are some of the best I have read and comparable with those in “We Were Soldiers Once … and Young”.

I highly recommend the book to those interested in military history or Vietnam War history. David Hackworth relates a narrative about himself.

It is a good story of the men in the 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry that deserves to be read.

Uncertain Seasons by Elizabeth Shelfer Morgan

Unedited Letters 

Uncertain Seasons contains the unedited letters from her uncle, 1LT Howard Shelfer, who was with the 9th Infantry Division, 60th Infantry, B Company in North Africa, Sicily, England (as S4) and France.

1LT Howard Shelfer was killed on Aug. 11, 1944, during the counterattack near Mortain.

9th Infantry Division in North Africa, Sicily, England & France

Uncertain Seasons will be of interest to 9th Infantry Division veterans of World War II and the children.

 This book has been awarded the Best Book for Young Readers by the Florida Historical Society (1995).

Example of Using Letters as Premise for a Book

It is an excellent example of using letters as the premise for a book. Elizabeth Shelfer Morgan wrote Uncertain Seasons in 1994.

It was published by the University of Alabama Press. This book has been awarded the Best Book for Young Readers by the Florida Historical Society (1995).

Jungle in Black by Steve Macguire

Memoir

Jungle in Black is the memoir of Steve Maguire. McGuire was a young, gung-ho, Airborne Ranger who led a 9th Infantry Division battalion Reconnaissance Platoon in the 6th Battalion, 31st Infantry in the Mekong Delta.

Reconnaissance Platoon Leader

The story opens with drawn-out and generic combat descriptions that lead up to Maguire's wounding. The rest of the book covers his treatment. We learn that an exploding Vietcong mine blinded him for life. This is an honest first-person account that never wallows in self-pity. Unfortunately, he in no way offers enough background about his life to round out his personality.

Just Another War Story Memoir

He missed the mark with his book. He paints a broad description of the early stages of rehab. The description covers the usual male boasting, lust for nurses and hopes dashed by physicians not healing or restoring his sight. He fails to feature how he coped with his loss of sight and earned a doctorate in psychology (not mentioned until in an epilogue). This could have been a very inspirational and motivational story; instead, it’s just another war story memoir.

American Soldier by General Tommy Franks

President Bill Clinton promoted General Franks to fours stars. President Clinton also appointed Tommy Franks as Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command beginning in July 2000. General Franks served in that role through July 2003. In between was 9/11.

Tommy Franks led the American and Coalition forces to victory in both Afghanistan and Iraq. The part of American Soldier covering these wars are the most interesting because they combine military maneuvers, politics, action, and commentary. This does not mean that the rest of his autobiography is dull. They are not. General Franks’ writing is clear and engaging and his insider's perspective is informative and interesting.

In addition to his years as a war general, his memoir covers his childhood, his early years in the Army, his tours of Vietnam, his return to college to complete his degree at the University of Texas at Arlington, and how he considered retirement before being called up as commander of Central Command.

The "good old boy" from Midland, Texas rings throughout the book. We also see the diplomacy of General Franks. He provides insights into many of the individuals he interfaced. Those looking for criticism of persons in political office will be disappointed. Many will see his expressing admiration for his own staff, for President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in particular, but he also has high respect for the office of the president leaving no criticism for Mr. Clinton or Mr. Bush.

He lets us know he was surprised by the absence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and that no WMDs were used against American troops under his watch. American Soldier is a compelling book giving significant insights on the war on terrorism from the point of view of both warrior and diplomat. Read by Jimmie A. Kepler in November - December 2005.

Rangers at War: LRRPs in Viet-Nam by Shelby L. Stanton

Rangers at War: LRRPs in Viet-Nam by Shelby L. Stanton . The 9th Infantry Division LRRP (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols) Platoon became the LRP Detachment which became E Company, 50th Infantry which became E Company, 75 Infantry (Rangers) which... Got all that? Don't worry, Shelby Stanton sorts it all out for you. He not only presents the history of Rangers and LRRPs unit by unit, but also paints a vivid picture of the toughest of all jobs in Vietnam. Read and reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Eight Stars to Victory: A History of the Veteran U.S. Ninth Infantry Division by Joseph B. Mittelman

Eight Stars to Victory: A History of the Veteran U.S. Ninth Infantry Division by Joseph B. Mittelman was written for and published by the Ninth Division Association in 1948. The book tells of how eight battle stars were won. It covers from the shores of North Africa, in 1942, to the banks of the Elbe, in 1945. Over 50,000 men served in the Ninth Infantry Division during World War II. The division had nearly 25,000 casualties including 4,747 killed in action. The copy of the book I read was found through the Dallas Public Library.

The book is 408 pages and begins by telling the story of the activation of the division and its participation in World War I.

Next the author goes into extensive detail about the division’s reactivation in 1940 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Stories are shared of living in tents and not having enough hot water.

We learn how in late 1942 the Ninth Infantry Division was split between the Eastern and Western Task Forces and of the division’s role in the invasion of North Africa. Part of the Ninth Infantry Division made a beach landing in French Morocco. The other part of the division landed in Algeria.

The division’s role in the Sicilian campaign is examined next. We learn of their involvement in the fighting in the mountainous heart of the island along the central route toward Messina. After Messina was taken and Sicily fell, the Ninth Infantry Division remained on Sicily. It did not move to the Italian mainland. The division’s next destination was England.

The author then informs of the Ninth Division’s time in England. He tells of the city of London, English pubs, and Constable Lane. He shares about training and planning for the invasion. We learn that although the division had heavy amphibious experience they entered the continent on D-Day + 4 at Utah Beach. The Old Reliables were involved in the campaign on the Cotentin peninsula and the assault on Cherbourg. They fought in the battles in the hedgerows. In early August the division assisted in the final breakout by American forces. They were involved in halting of the Mortain counter-offensive. They entered Belgium on September 2nd. They were involved in battle of the Huertgen Forest.

Next the Ninth Division went on to the Battle of the Bulge. They held the northern shoulder of the front. They captured Roer dams. The Ninth Infantry Division was among the first across the Rhine River and instrumental in the capturing of the Remagen bridgehead. From here we move to the final stages of the war with the battle of the Ruhr pocket and the division plunging eastward to the banks of the Elbe as the German army crumbled.

The book concludes with the Ninth Division’s role as Occupation forces and the deactivation of the division at the beginning of 1947.

The book has numerous maps, photos, and coverage of each campaign that earned the division its eight battle stars. The book falls between a divisional souvenir and a hard hitting historical research. It is what it is. It will disappoint the serious scholar. Reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Viet-Nam 1968-1969: A Battalion Surgeon's Journal by Byron E. Holley, M.D.

Viet-Nam 1968-1969: A Battalion Surgeon's Journal by Byron E. Holley, M.D. is gritty, gutsy, and grueling. It is the true story of a surgeon's experience on the bloody battlefields of Vietnam. Holley spent the longest years of his young life as an infantry surgeon, living like a swamp rat in the Mekong Delta. In a land torn by generations of bloodshed, he witnessed firsthand the heartbreaking courage of the men who fought and died in a terrible war. Read and reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Victory Road by Robert C. Baldridge

Victory Road by Robert C. Baldridge is a great World War II memoir. It is the gripping story of a determined young soldier in an artillery battalion of the famous 9th Infantry Division of the U.S. First Army. The Ninth Division invaded Normandy in June 1944 and fought on through five battle campaigns to victory over Germany in May 1945 at the Elbe River.

Robert C. Baldridge accurately and compellingly describes a soldier's experiences in Army basic training. He describes what is like being shipped overseas to England in December 1943 on the ocean liner Queen Mary. He gives a clear picture of further training in England. We learn the story of crossing the English Channel to Utah Beach in Normandy on D-Day + 4. We experience fighting the German forces for almost a year while living in the field during all four seasons. This book is available online from Merriam Press. Read and reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Nudge Blue: A Ninth Infantryman's Memoir of World War II by Donald E. Lavender

Donald E. Lavender was a member of Company I, 39th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, originally arriving as a replacement in early October 1944 in the Hürtgen Forest.

There are a lot of stories about the war. Some have been made into movies. If you are looking for sensationalism, you won't find it here. If you have an interest in what war was like to a 20-year-old in the Infantry, Nudge Blue comes close to describing that experience.

The combat portion of this story was written directly from notes accumulated during the actual fighting. In the over 50 years since, facts about places and unit action have been verified to assure accuracy. It includes action in several places that are famous—the Hürtgen Forest, the Bulge, the Rhine River crossing at Remagen and contact with the Russians on the Elbe River.

Lavender's experiences in combat make for fascinating, insightful reading, and an excellent companion to Bob Baldridge's Victory Road, showing what it was like to be an infantryman in the 9th Division during World War II. Read and reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Mobile Riverine Force: America's Mobile Riverine Force Vietnam Vol. 1 and 2

Mobile Riverine Force: America's Mobile Riverine Force Vietnam Vol. 1 is a history of the Mobile Riverine Force in the US Armed Services from its beginning through today. It contains a 74 page description of Riverine Operations 1966-1969 by Major General William B Fulton. It tells the history of the Mobile Riverine Force Association. It shares stories of member's personal experience through biographies of Mobile Riverine Force Association members. It has hundreds of historic photographs.

Volume II proceeds on where Volume I left off and details the ongoing function of the Riverine Forces leading up to the final boats being transferred to the South Vietnamese Navy in December 1970. In the interim period you will see how combat hardened sailors volunteered to be Advisors to the South Vietnamese Navy under the command of Task Force 194. Despite the outcome of the war, a legacy of honor, dedication, and heroism was left by a small band of unique young sailors and soldiers. (Vol 2 review description written by the publisher - source: http://www.turnerpublishing.com/detail.aspx?ID=1237)

Doc: Platoon Medic by Daniel E. Evans Jr., Charles W. Sasser

Daniel E. Evans was a young man who envied his father's World War II rite of passage and sought his own. He joined the Army as a medic and volunteered for Vietnam to seek his destiny. His 9th Infantry Division duty assignment was the 9th Medical Battalion but he had come to Vietnam to see combat. With persistence, Evans got himself attached to the 4th Battalion 39th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division as a platoon medic for most of his tour. Now it was time to learn how the reality of combat measured up to his boyhood imagination. Evans tells a vivid tale of his first hand experience with the aftermath of life and death conflict in a far off land. Read by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Brown Water, Black Berets: Coastal and Riverine Warfare in Vietnam by Lt. Cdr. Thomas J. Cutler

Brown Water, Black Berets: Coastal and Riverine Warfare in Vietnam by Lt. Cdr. Thomas J. Cutler, USN is a very readable concise history of the US Navy involvement in Vietnam. The author weaves facts and figures with the human stories of the men and women who were fighting a different kind of war. You will see the beginnings of the Vietnam navy, the US advisor role, and active involvement with coastal and inland waterway operations. The stories of naval personnel performing routine surveillance of coastal waters or engaged in the terror of close quarter combat on the muddy waters of the Mekong Delta paint a picture of the war in Vietnam that is often overlooked. A partnership of Navy and 9th Infantry Divisions units loosened the tight grip that the Viet Cong had on the strategically important Delta.

Battle for Saigon: Tet 1968 by Keith Nolan

This book gives an excellent tactical description of the fighting in and around Saigon during Tet, 1968. While many, many other books give a larger strategic sense to the whole Offensive, this book is very specific and useful to understanding what happened in South Viet-Nam's capital. This book has another strength, too, in that its accounts of small-unit leaders in combat provide great lessons for future junior military leaders--especially for company command level and below. The one big drawback is that it has no tactical maps, just one big map of Saigon at the beginning of the book. Detailed maps would have been a great help while trying to decipher the textual descriptions of the fight. The author should take note of this for future revisions of this book. Read by Jimmie A. Kepler.

Jungle in Black by Steve Macguire

Jungle in Black is the memoir of Steve Maguire. McGuire was a young, gung-ho, Airborne Ranger who lead a 9th Infantry Division battalion Reconnaissance Platoon in the 6th Battalion, 31st Infantry in the Mekong Delta. The story opens with drawn-out and generic combat descriptions that lead up to Maguire's wounding. The rest of the book covers his treatment. We learn that an exploding Vietcong mine blinded him for life. This is an honest first-person account that never wallows in self-pity. Unfortunately, he in no way offers sufficient background about his life to round out his person. He missed the mark with his book. He paints a broad description of the early stages of rehab. The description covers the usual male boasting, lust for nurses and hopes dashed by physicians not healing or restoring his sight. He fails to feature how he coped with his loss of sight and earned a doctorate in psychology (not mentioned until in an epilogue). This could have been a very inspirational and motivational story; instead it’s just another war story memoir.

It Doesn’t Take a Hero by H. Norman Schwarzkopf

I first read this book in 1995. I have read it once since. "It Doesn’t Take a Hero" by H. Norman Schwarzkopf takes its title from a quote Schwarzkopf gave during an interview with Barbara Walters in 1991; "It Doesn’t Take a Hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle."

Schwarzkopf came from an upper middle class family, his father was a West Point graduate, head of the New Jersey state police (who later led the hunt for the Lindbergh kidnappers), and served President Roosevelt on a special assignment in Iran. They lived in the best house in their town, and even employed a maid, but there was a dark family secret... his mother's alcoholism. His experiences in the Middle East in Iran as a young man, where he lived with his general father, gave him a unique insight into the Arab world that served him personally, and the coalition as a whole. He went to boarding schools in the middle-east and in Switzerland. This helped him develop the cultural understanding and build some relationships that he would later call on during the Gulf War.

The part of the book that deals with his duties in Vietnam is interesting. He expresses the popular hindsight viewpoint against the stupidity and arrogance of the politicians and 'Brass' who ordered young men to lay down their lives in that far away land for no good reason. He became convinced that he had to do something to change the army from within; it was either that or he resigns his commission.

His role in leading the rescue of the medical students in Grenada is extremely interesting. It provided him with lessons that were applied during the Gulf War.

The most interesting part of the book is his telling of the Gulf War, Desert Storm. It is probably true to say that without "Stormin'" Norman, there wouldn't have been a, successful, Gulf War. He was able to play on the links his father had with Arab Royalty, and then forged his own links with the current Saudi Royal Family, working with Crown Princes on a first name basis to get things done, everything from releasing endless millions of dollars in payments to the US - what is the daily rental on an aircraft carrier?! - to arranging for "tent cities" to be erected to shield the incoming troops from the scorching desert sun.

The most interesting aspect of the Gulf War section was the politics of the coalition, especially in the Arab world, something that was almost completely missing in Colin Powell's memoir. In this crucial, although mostly unknown area of the War, Schwarzkopf's experiences in the Middle East were invaluable. Middle Eastern politics are a lethal mine field at the best of times - us Brits have had our fingers burnt on more than one occasion over the years! - and pouring hundreds of thousands of free thinking, free drinking, Western troops of endless religious and moral persuasions into the autocracy that is the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, should have been a recipe for utter disaster!

Schwarzkopf's deft handling of the endless 'difficulties' involving religious services, the consumption of alcohol, the reading of magazines of dubious 'artistic' merit, even the receiving of Christmas cards and the erection of Christmas decorations, were handled with a skill and subtlety that one would not have thought a mere 'soldier' possible. And then of course there was the Israeli question. The one thing above all else that would have blown the coalition apart would have been Israel attacking Iraq in retaliation for the Scuds that fell on Israeli territory. Although much of the efforts to keep Israel out of the action were handled direct from Washington, Schwarzkopf's handling of the Saudi's in particular, on the ground as it were was masterful.

"It Doesn’t Take a Hero" is a fascinating tale, a real inspiration; it shows what one man can achieve through clear thinking, a positive attitude, boundless enthusiasm, and a profound love, not only of his own country, but of mankind. I would recommend it highly. Read and reviewed by Jimmie A. Kepler.

About Face: The Odyssey of An American Soldier by Col David H. Hackworth and Julie Sherman

About Face: The Odyssey of An American Soldier by Col David H. Hackworth and Julie Sherman. It was released in hardcover in March 1989. This 875 page book chronicles the 25 year career of David Hackworth. The writing is excellent and interesting. In one section of the book, Colonel Hackworth proceeds to describe his effort to turn the 4/39th into an effective fighting force. Casualties went down and morale went up. The 60 pages he devotes to the 4/39 and 9th Infantry Division provide valuable insight on how political influences and personal ambitions affected the lives of soldiers who served their country. This part of the book was expanded into the book Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of the U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam (released in 2002) by Col. (Retired) David H. Hackworth and his wife Eilhys England. Read in May 2005.