Blood Trails: The Combat Diary of a Foot Soldier in Vietnam
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Product Description
For Private First Class Ronnau Vietnam was better than a poke in the face with a sharp stick. Believing Eisenhower's domino theory, he volunteered for the Army and off to Vietnam he went, armed with an M-14 rifle and American Express travellers cheques. And it only took a matter of a few days from his landing at Saigon to finding himself in a modern day Picket's Charge. Every gun out there was on rock and roll. Tracers from both sides flew in all directions. The air around us was supersaturated with burnt gun powder and appeared slightly gray. It was unreal. Each of us was playing Russian roulette and we knew it. The guy to my immediate right let out a groan and fell over after being shot in the belly. A few steps later Sergeant Condor yelped out loud like a swatted puppy as a bullet went in the front of his shirt and out the back. He stumbled forward for a step or two before crashing into the ground on his face. Soon he was back up on his feet again, moving forward and shooting right along with the rest of us. This was absolutely the wildest and most crazy thing that I had ever done in my life. Ronnau remained unscathed for seven months until a bullet found his jaw and he was sent home. After a medical discharge for wounds received in Vietnam, and a lengthy recuperation at Letterman Army Hospital in San Francisco, Chris returned to Southern California. After college and medical school he worked as an emergency room physician and director in St. Louis, Missouri for over twenty years. He is divorced with three children. In 2002 he returned to Long Beach where he now lives and writes.
About the Author
Ronnau remained unscathed for seven months until a bullet found his jaw and he was sent home. After a medical discharge for wounds received in Vietnam, and a lengthy recuperation at Letterman Army Hospital in San Francisco, Chris returned to Southern California. After college and medical school he worked as an emergency room physician and director in St. Louis, Missouri for over twenty years. He is divorced with three children. In 2002 he returned to Long Beach where he now lives and writes.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This book is, in my view, a laymans educational diary re the events of 1967 (hope that date is correct). An easy read with a sobering dose of reality. The author gives what appears to me, to be a 'normal' persons view of the conflict, too young to fully understand the enormity of the risk he was taking, Christopher Ronnau plunged himself into the depths of one of the most horrific situations a person can face and by sheer chance emerged alive, if only just, at the other side. Take this book on holiday, on the train, or to bed for an hour each night, but find the time to read it; it won't change your life, but may alter some of your preconceived views, if only a little. The book itself is a mass print production and as such is not best bound, if anything, this has a sad irony about it, in that the books apparent disposability appears to reflect the attitudes taken to some young soldiers lives. Dispite its tatty state, I will be keeping my copy as I almost feel I have developed a distant friendship with the once young Ronnau.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Vietnam 1967, a teenager joins the infantry because he reckons it will be exciting where the action is! This is the beautifully written memoir of a naive young man wandering around the war in a teenage fugue, his observations are often hilarious and sometimes profound, but overall this is one of those rare books that truly imparts a sense of time and place.
27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I seem to be in the middle of a vietnam fest, i've probably read 20 odd books this last year... and let me tell you this is one of the best, if not the best, i normally rate a book (wrightly or wrongly) on how much action the person sees and perhaps in this case the author sees a little less action than some of the "sniper" or "special forces" 1st person accounts that are out there, but it is written in such a way that you are there with him on patrol while a column of VC part the grass infront of him and without seeing the wide eyed figure of the author in the darkness pass by unchallenged. And i have to say that its the first book Vietnam book that has made me chuckle so much, its superbly written, and really funny, not special forces funny, 19-20 yr old country boy funny, i loved the fact he carried a M-16 magazine full of just tracer, which he refered to as his "Ray-gun". Towards the end of the book he certainly gets his fair share of action and its superbly detailed with his thoughts at the time. Once again buy this book ...its outstanding!!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A slow burner......
Having read quite a few number of books and articles on the Vietnam War this one is certainly different to the norm. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Spread
An Honest and Interesting Account
This is a very honest and interesting account of one guy's experience in Viet Nam. I must admit that initially I felt critical of the author as he seemed to have gone to Viet Nam... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mr C.
Unusually Plaintive, in a Good Way
This is an oddly touching account of a young man marching cheerfully off to war. He is naive yet you are left with the impression that he valued his experience in Vietnam and -... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Jonathan Lake
Blood Trails
I found this book to be a very light-hearted take on the Vietnam War and the experiences of Mr.Ronnau compared to other works on the subject. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Ms. Susan Yates
Excellent Read
I really enjoyed this book and I think part of the fact was because it was written in a simple way (by no means a criticism I would point out! Read more
Published 10 months ago by Stenolass
Honest, funny but rough around the edges
I bought this on the strength of the reviews alone - not the title which is awful and gives the wrong impression. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Mister Ewan
entertaining book about a fool
I enjoyed reading this book. I was expecting to read about a typical soldier's experiences in Vietnam, instead this book is the author's account of one mishap after another. Read more
Published 13 months ago by DHarling
In The Nam!
Great book. I was sceptical about this as most books by Americans I read might have well been written in French! This guy tells it very simply from a young, naive point of view. Read more
Published 18 months ago by BG
First book I read on my Kindle
Not sure how I got back to books on Vietnam - I've read a few in the past 15 years or so, but nothing recent. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Mr. Mark Wickens
Brilliant
This is as it was when the author was 19, and is well written from his point of view at that age,the whole outlook is typical "teenager" and it doe's have you laughing out loud at... Read more
Published on 28 Mar 2010 by mark king
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