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Bringing It All Back Home: An Oral History of New York City's Vietnam Veterans
A collection of heartrending oral histories that topples assumptions about the people who served in Vietnam
The Vietnam War was a defining moment for a generation of Americans. But for years myths and prejudices about its veterans have dominated our country’s consciousness. Bringing It All Back Home introduces us to the individuals behind this difficult time in our nation’s history. In the spirit of Tom Brokaw’s The Greatest Generation, Philip F. Napoli’s collection of oral histories from New York’s Vietnam vets humanizes the men and women who sacrificed for our country in a deeply troubling war.
Challenging the view that Vietnam veterans were irreversibly damaged or disabled by their experiences, Napoli shares the stories of soldiers who witnessed death and destruction on the battlefield and returned home seeking to understand what they had endured. Overcoming adversity, a great many of them would go on to lead ambitious lives of public service. The memories of these men and women—including a nurse who went on a hunger strike to promote peace while working at a hospital aiding both soldiers and Vietnamese citizens; a paratrooper whose experiences on the battlefield left him with emotional scars that led to violence and homelessness; and a black soldier who achieved an unexpected camaraderie with his fellow servicemen in racially tense times—put a human face on the historical record.
The Vietnam War was a defining moment for a generation of Americans. But for years myths and prejudices about its veterans have dominated our country’s consciousness. Bringing It All Back Home introduces us to the individuals behind this difficult time in our nation’s history. In the spirit of Tom Brokaw’s The Greatest Generation, Philip F. Napoli’s collection of oral histories from New York’s Vietnam vets humanizes the men and women who sacrificed for our country in a deeply troubling war.
Challenging the view that Vietnam veterans were irreversibly damaged or disabled by their experiences, Napoli shares the stories of soldiers who witnessed death and destruction on the battlefield and returned home seeking to understand what they had endured. Overcoming adversity, a great many of them would go on to lead ambitious lives of public service. The memories of these men and women—including a nurse who went on a hunger strike to promote peace while working at a hospital aiding both soldiers and Vietnamese citizens; a paratrooper whose experiences on the battlefield left him with emotional scars that led to violence and homelessness; and a black soldier who achieved an unexpected camaraderie with his fellow servicemen in racially tense times—put a human face on the historical record.
- GenresHistory
272 pages, Hardcover
First published June 11, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 6, 2013
Excellent in terms of a range of stories and voices across the many [American] experiences of the Vietnam War. The author did well also in including stories of people across the educational and socioeconomic spectrum, less so on other factors, though at least we learn of the experiences of a few black vets, and from two women vets. Yet the strengths of the medium (oral history) were also its limits - these diverse stories do not form an overly strong narrative and I came away from them having connected to individual stories but without an overall context to place them in. A timeline or some historical background to link all the stories would've been helpful. Still, though, I think this book captured a very valuable piece of history.
July 3, 2013
Really good. Oral history that reads quickly and debunks a lot of the myths about the war.
July 28, 2013
Powerful
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews