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This memoir of a tour of duty during the Vietnam War offers a detailed account of an infantryman drafted into the war in 1966. Using letters he sent home to his new wife and his parents, Hoy recounts the battles, patrols, R&R, and overall conditions during his year fighting and staying alive in Vietnam. His powerful first-person perspective provides an in-depth view of the reality of war as a drafted soldier and offers insight about the Vietnam War that can only come from someone who has lived through it on the ground, in the jungle, and on patrol. Descriptions of the heat, the fear, the impossible choices, the animal encounters, and humorous incidents all combine to create an encompassing story of war that is authentic and moving in its honesty.
Hoy focuses primarily on a straightforward recollection of his tour but occasionally veers into analysis and opinion about his experiences. These insights gleaned from a firsthand account are valuable for thinking about war in general but are exceedingly important when thinking about the unique situation of the Vietnam War. When Hoy considers his personality and tendencies, he suggests that his intensity served him well in Vietnam and probably helped him survive. But he also speaks plainly about the possibility each day that you could do everything right and still get killed. Each page of Hoy's riveting story is centered on the intense will to fight in order to come home alive and resume living the life he was just beginning with his wife before he was drafted.