There are plenty of war memoirs out there but Lt Gen Moore's
account of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry's fierce battles in the
Ia Drang valley in Vietnam stands out as a polished, intense and
informative piece of work. The subject material is fascinating in
itself. Moore's unit was involved in the first major clash between
Viet Cong and US forces, as the two sides faced up to each other
and tried to learn the tactics that would bring them victory.
Unfortunately for Moore's unit, this meant dropping by helicopter
into a Viet Cong infested area in November 1965, becoming
completely surrounded, and being forced to fight for survival
against superior enemy forces. Drawing mainly on Moore's
recollections, official documents and reports and the memories of
dozens of US and Vietnamese soldiers and officers, the finer
details of weapons and tactics will satisfy the serious military
historian looking to study infantry combat. But it is the human
stories that draw the reader's attention. Oral histories, which
play such a major role in compiling combat studies, are intriguing
by their very personal nature, and the recollections of American
and Vietnamese soldiers are used here to great effect to highlight
key moments of the fighting. The book successfully conveys
something of the terror and exhilaration of being a young soldier
in combat against a determined foe. Countless tales of heroism and
fear are the real heart of this book, along with gruesome details
of injury and death. The level of detail, large array of
personalities and fast-moving action make reading this book
difficult at times. Although they occasionally lapse into jingoism,
Moore and Galloway deserve credit for meticulous research and for
making an effort to study the wider political context of the
fighting and events from the enemy's point of view. (Kirkus UK)
Vietnam. November 1965. 450 men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, under the command of Lt. Col. Hal Moore, are dropped by helicopter into a small clearing in the Ia Drang Valley and immediately surrounded by 2,000 North Vietnamese soldiers. Three days later, only two and a half miles away, a sister battalion is chopped to pieces in a similarly brutal manner. Together, these actions at the landing zones X-Ray and Albany constitute one of the most savage and significant battles of the Vietnam War and set the tone of the conflict to come.
Now a major motion picture starring Mel Gibson
General
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