The Ledger

by Raland J. Patterson

Throughout a grueling, extended tour in the jungles of Vietnam, Captain Dean Crosby lived for the adrenaline rush. A born loner, Crosby recorded each mission into a ledger, ranking missions based on the difficulty and the high he felt afterwards. The sum of his emotional life rested between the leather-covered pages of The Ledger. Taking the most high risk missions possible in his Cobra helicopter was Crosby's standard operating procedure, despite the risks to his life or the lives of his crew. After a dangerous mission goes wrong in the waning weeks of his tour, Crosby has to live with the consequences being grounded from his beloved skies for several weeks and the injuries to his closest friend and the one person with a true insight into his life, his copilot Tony Cueroni. With the help of Tony and his one-time OCS mentor, Dave Adams, Crosby is left to reinvent himself as he comes back to the states. With no more missions to fly, will he be able to heed the advice given to him by his father from his deathbed to 'make a difference in the world?' What will Dean Crosby find as he opens himself up to a whole new world of challenges, emotions, and opportunities for entries into The Ledger?

372 pages, Perfect Paperback

First published August 10, 2010

Reviews

[Louis Reichenbach]

Once a pilot, always a pilot.

Good story about a Vietnam chopper pilot and the type of life he had once his tour there was over. Through it all he managed to do good by helping others.This he managed to achieve by following fatherly advice given to him at an young age when most young men choose not to.

[Bob George]

Fiction???

Very confusing. Is this fiction? I have read hundreds of Vietnam books. Just wasn't my style. Couldn't figure it out.