Reviewer Fran Lewis:
Fran worked in the NYC Public Schools as the Reading and Writing
Staff Developer for over 36 years. She has three masters degrees and
a PD in Supervision and Administration. Currently. She is a member of
Who's Who of America's Teachers and Who's
Who of America's Executives from Cambridge. In addition,
she is the author of three children's books and a fourth Alzheimer’s
book is Memories are Precious: Alzheimer’s Journey: Ruth’s story
in honor of her mom. Fran
hopes to create more awareness for a cure of Alzheimer.
She
was also the musical director for shows in her school and ran the
school's newspaper. Fran writes reviews for authors upon request and
for several other sites. You can read some of my reviews on Ezine.com
and on ijustfinished under
the name Gabina.
Follow Here To Listen to Fran's Radio Show and Here
Author: Robert Wideman.
Publisher: Robert Wideman.Author: Robert Wideman.
Publisher: Robert Wideman.How do you survive when
those around you would like you gone? How did you live and keep your
sanity when others berate you, torture you, starve and try to
disgrace you hoping to leave you weak and vulnerable? What happens
when on you mission you are shot down and wind up as an American POW
in North Vietnam a war that so many thought should never have been
fought and a people that never wanted us to at all. Told in the first
person narrative from the first page Robert Wideman, the author and
POW in North Vietnam lets you into his heart, mind and thoughts as he
takes a six year journey from one prison camp to another, with guards
that were brutal and others indifferent hoping to someday see his
wife and free.
From the moment his captors had him and the
interrogations began you realize that he had a moral fiber and
integrity that would not allow them to break him at first and yet
hoping to survive the briefest moments and live in conditions so
unimaginable as he describes the camps, the food not fit for humans,
the lack of sleep, clothes and necessities and the stares, punches
and cold heartedness of those they were paraded in front as if they
were some sort of circus acts waiting for the ringmaster to command
them to start their performances. The author describes his prison,
the camps and the other men who would become his inmates sharing his
sparse cell. No conveniences, no way to communicate with others they
devised a code similar to the Moss Code to learn what the other
prisoners in different rooms were enduring and what they knew about
the outside world. But, the VOICE of the Viet Cong came over the
loudspeaker system spouting their lies, propaganda and making these
men or hoping to make them feel defeated and small.
Courage,
fortitude and the will to stay strong and never falter. As the
prisoners bond and the guards vary in the degree of their taunting
and punishments each one reflects back on their lives back home and
the things they miss the most. Routines established in these camps,
chores, degrading as they seem, when to wash, bathe, the smallest
amount of necessities, breaking out in boils and worse, living with
ants and hoping not to eat a bug from what they were given, the
inhuman treatment was something that no one should have endured as
they counted the months, years and minutes hoping for freedom. Being
a prisoner and considered a criminal he is forced to answer
questions, be interrogated and punished when refusing. The phony
gestures to make them at ease and get them to talk did not go over
the heads of any of the prisoners.
For six years he lived with
many men of different rankings and personalities and then when the
upper brass or Heavies were captured they enforced another code or
restrictions on the POW’s as if the Navy was in charge of them and
not the guards. Living with someone named Larry and another named
Howie set the author on several paths of confrontations.
Interrogations were many and some were more brutal then others.
All the while thinking about Patricia his wife, his parents and brother hoping to return home and resume his life. Men who were educated in many areas and finally being given some type of books to read when things seem to simmer down in the camps. But, moving around, changing rooms and dealing with different personalities, lack of conveniences and then receiving packages from home the littlest hope kept him going. The ending is quite compelling and the reunion with his family not what you might expect. After debriefings, media, press, trying to get back into flying and life not everything goes smoothly and the POW’s were not given their just do or extra two years in their pension for doing more than serving their country by putting their lives on the line. I thought it was ingenious how they created a communication system between the rooms and managed to signal each other when punished and the guards were coming close.
The final pages are enlightening as the author relates what happened when he submitted his manuscript about his experiences the first time and the responses he received that cost him a promotion. The Vietnam experience he states that, “there will always be people who pursue power by ingratiating themselves to those in power without pausing to assess the goals of those leaders.” As you enter each room that he spent time in, witness the encounters with each person he met, hear the voices of the interrogators as they tried to break him down as he did his best to rise above their commands we understand even more why this was a war that was fought in a country that did not want us to defend how they ran their government and why this was an unwinnable war but those in power would do nothing to stop it fearing they might “jeopardize their careers.”
Read the final pages and hear the words and thoughts as the author sums up many fine points, delivers powerful messages and explains why this war and those that we are fighting now are just our way of taking control of those not as powerful as us and even with the truth revealed and apologizing for our wrongs takes character. There are those that supported the war and those that did not after reading this compelling and thought provoking memoir you the reader will decide for yourself how far men and women handle war and just how far you can TEST A MAN before he breaks. Read the final pages to learn more about what the author learned before he too soldered on.