Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Wiest, a history professor at University of Southern Mississippi, offers something rare in the literary canon of the Vietnam War: an in-depth look at the families-primarily the wives-of the company of U.S. Army 9th Infantry division men he chronicled in The Boys of '67 (2012). For that book, Wiest spent three years interviewing nearly 100 officers and enlistees of Charlie Company and their significant others. He conducted additional interviews with the soldiers' wives for the new book and made use of eight "major letter collections." Through oral histories and his own scene-setting, Wiest tells of the experiences of college students, young housewives and mothers, and working women before, during, and after their husbands' service in Vietnam. Among the women are Kaye French, who recalls changing her wedding date to accommodate her husband's training and finding out she was pregnant just after he shipped out; Mary Ann Simon, who endured an agonizing wait for updates after her future husband was shot in Vietnam; and Sue Reed, whose marriage foundered partly due to her husband's wartime experiences. Wiest writes well and with empathy for what the women went through. This is a novel look at the Vietnam War's legacy that speaks to the experiences of military families today. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Review by Library Journal Review
In 1967, the United States increased its -presence in Vietnam from 300,000 to 500,000 troops, 40 percent of whom were married. Wiest (history, Univ. of Southern Mississippi) follows up his powerful work The Boys of '67 with a sequel of sorts: the perspectives of the wives and families left behind. Using oral interviews, letters, diaries, and other primary resources, Wiest provides a compassionate look at how the conflict impacted these individuals to the present day. Although specific to this Vietnam experience, readers will appreciate the common threads that run through the sacrifices of military duty during conflict: loneliness, striving for balance upon return to civilian life, and coping with physical and mental illnesses related to wartime service. Although there are plenty of other works that discuss the home front, the uniqueness here lies in the cohesive yet distinctive experiences of the Charlie Company itself, offering a deeper understanding of the soldiers through the actions of their wives during their year away. VERDICT Historians, military spouses, and those impacted by Vietnam will find this work sensitive, familiar, and uplifting.-Maria Bagshaw, Elgin Community Coll. Lib., IL © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A focused Vietnam War-era history of the "wives and familiesleft behind for war."The Boys of '67, the author's intimate history of an infantry company in Vietnam, was well-received when it was published in 2012, and it became the basis for the National Geographic special Brothers in War. Here, Wiest (History/Univ. of Southern Mississippi; Vietnam: A View from the Front Lines, 2013, etc.) revisits the material, adding interviews and covering similar ground, this time from the perspectives of the soldiers' wives and families. The result is a moving work as stirring as its predecessor. The format jumps back and forth among two dozen wives across seven chapters; the recollections begin with their childhoods and continue through their present lives. The 1966 draft took men, married or not, soon after they reached 18. Men in college were exempt, so the resulting Army was not a cross-section of the population, and readers will be unnerved at the impoverished backgrounds of so many. A private's pay gave many their first taste of financial security. Women married younger in those days, and many couples were courting when the draft notice arrived. Consequently, there were hasty marriages, and a surprising number of men left for Vietnam with their wives pregnant or with small children. The women had a miserable time. Often fresh out of high school, they struggled alone but with remarkable success to make a home, earn a living, and care for an infant, always aware that their husbands were in mortal danger. Normal life sometimes resumed after their service, but more often than not, the men were emotionally damaged, withdrawn, or abusive. Some marriages recovered, but others didn't, and it's quite possible that the author has omitted the worst cases.A painful yet impressive account of the effects of war on the families left behind. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
