Mighty Men of Valor: With Charlie Company on Hill 714-Vietnam, 1970

By: John G. Roberts

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

THE SCREAMING EAGLES IN VIETNAM 1970: the Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne have been in combat against the elusive Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army for nearly seven years. In this memoir, author John G. Roberts tells the story of the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, the "Widow Makers" of the 101st Divisions' 1st Brigade. Written in the often crude language of the combat infantryman, Roberts describes what it was like to confront the enemy during close combat in the triple-canopied jungles of I Corps, west of the Song Bo River. As part of Operation Texas Star, the 502nd Infantry (the "O-Deuce") lost 30 men killed and over 200 wounded in a month long battle in April and May, 1970. JUNGLE COMBAT THRU THE EYES OF A YOUNG SHAKE-N-BAKE SERGEANT Roberts relates the shock and grief he and others felt when his 11-man squad lost 3 men killed and five wounded in about an hour of combat. The fights around Hill 714, Hill 882 and the 4-month Battle of Firebase Ripcord received very little attention in the media. The press was focused on the April invasion of Cambodia and the May student shootings at Kent State University in Ohio. Roberts, like many Vietnam combat veterans, carried the symptoms of PTSD with him when he returned home. The author is very open about the 35 year battle he had with PTSD and alcohol. With help from his family and support from medical professionals at Veterans Affairs, he has worked out a truce with the demons of PTSD and now lives a quiet life in Southern California. JOIN THE O-DEUCE DURING OPERATION TEXAS STAR By reading Mighty Men of Valor: With Charlie Company on Hill 714 - Vietnam, 1970 you have the chance to experience life (and death) as an infantry grunt during the last big American-led battles of the Vietnam War as only someone who was there can describe them.

A honest description of Vietnam

Rather than detail the combat experiences, the author relates the feelings and impressions of his time in Vietnam. His story provides a means to accompany a typical youth exposed to brutality, fear and the senselessness of war with an overlay of the shortcomings and dysfunctions of our military.

The enemy usually had the advantage of choosing when and how to engage. As in subsequent wars, our massive technological and military superiority kept us in the fight but at a financially asymmetrical disadvantage. Our enemies tend to have a greater personal and emotional commitment over our "volunteers" who valiantly perform their duties disassociated from any understanding or purpose regarding their actions.

I lost two cousins in Vietnam and both died largely due to the incompetence of their leaders in Operation Buffalo and the Mothers Day Massacre.

Good telling of a soldiers story.

I dislike the computer narration because it is very cold and almost robotic. I do wish there was more of this story but he did pack him into a fairly short book.

Great first hand account

Normally I don’t like artificial voice but I feel like it did ok with this one. Over all the story was great though.

Seems to lack emotion.

Narrator felt distant to the story. Giving a lot of numbered map coordinates without a map is of no help to the story.