We Are Soldiers Still or Jupiters Travels

We Are Soldiers Still: A Journey Back to the Battlefields of Vietnam

Author: Harold G Moor

In their stunning follow-up to the classic bestseller We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young, Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and Joe Galloway return to Vietnam and reflect on how the war changed them, their men, their enemies, and both countries—often with surprising results.

More than fifteen years since its original publication, the number one New York Times bestseller We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young is still required reading in all branches of the military. Now Moore and Galloway revisit their relationships with ten American veterans of the battle—men such as Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley and helicopter pilot Bruce "Old Snake" Crandall—as well as Lt. Gen. Nguyen Hu An, who commanded the North Vietnamese Army troops on the other side, and two of his old company commanders. These men and their countries have all changed dramatically since the first head-on collision between the two great armies back in November 1965.

Traveling back to the red-dirt battlefields, commanders and veterans from both sides make the long and difficult journey from old enemies to new friends. After a trip in a Russian-made helicopter to the Ia Drang Valley in the Central Highlands, with the Vietnamese pilots using Moore's vintage U.S. Army maps and Galloway's Boy Scout compass to guide them, they reach the hallowed ground where so many died. All the men are astonished at how nature has reclaimed the land once scarred by bullets, napalm, and blood. As darkness falls, the unthinkable happens—the authors and many of their old comrades are stranded overnight, alone, left to confront the ghosts of the departed among the termite hills and creekbed.

Moore and Galloway combine gritty and vivid detail with reverence and respect for their comrades. Their ability to capture man's sense of heroism and brotherhood, their love for their men and their former enemies, and their fascination with the history of this enigmatic country make for riveting reading. With sixteen pages of photos, tributes to departed friends and loved ones, and General Moore's reflections on lessons learned throughout his military career, We Are Soldiers Still puts a human face on warfare in a way that will not soon be forgotten.

Publishers Weekly

It would be a monumental task for Moore and Galloway to top their classic 1992 memoir, We Were Soldiers Once... and Young. But they come close in this sterling sequel, which tells the backstory of two of the Vietnam War's bloodiest battles (in which Moore participated as a lieutenant colonel), their first book and a 1993 ABC-TV documentary that brought them back to the battlefield. Moore's strong first-person voice reviews the basics of the November 1965 battles, part of the 34-day Battle of the Ia Drang Valley. Among other things, Moore and Galloway (who covered the battle for UPI) offer portraits of two former enemy commanders, generals Nguyen Huu An and Chu Huy Man, whom the authors met-and bonded with-nearly three decades after the battle. This book proves again that Moore is an exceptionally thoughtful, compassionate and courageous leader (he was one of a handful of army officers who studied the history of the Vietnam wars before he arrived) and a strong voice for reconciliation and for honoring the men with whom he served. 16 pages of b&w photos. (Aug. 19)

Kirkus Reviews

To honor fallen comrades, a journalist and a soldier return to Vietnam battlefields more than 30 years later. Following publication of their bestselling account of 1965's horrific clash between the U.S. Army and the NVA in Ia Drang Valley (We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young: Ia Drang-The Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam, 1992), Moore, the battalion commander, and Galloway, the only journalist covering the battle, made a half-dozen trips to Vietnam looking "to walk the old battlefields and put some of our ghosts to rest." Wisely eschewing talk of "closure" and seeking instead to better understand what had happened, they pointedly searched out anyone with firsthand knowledge, including old enemies. Notwithstanding multiple bureaucratic roadblocks, they sat down with the two senior commanders who had fought against them. They also met many Vietnamese veterans who had taken part in the battle, interviewed Senior General Vo Nguyen Giap, the military architect of Vietnam's victories over France and America, walked the legendary Dienbienphu battleground (where the French suffered 2,242 killed and 6,463 wounded) and even spent a night on their own storied battlefield. Moore's voice carries the narrative and his depiction of this evening, including the tiger roars, meteor showers and tears shed recalling events decades old, proves unforgettable. Despite some awkwardness ("You killed my best friend," one Vietnamese colonel realizes after speaking with an American machine gunner), the authors are struck by the sympathy and understanding offered by their Vietnamese counterparts, by the common experience that separates soldiers, even those once enemies, from all civilians, and by how thecountryside has already absorbed and obscured the scars and detritus of war. Chapters on leadership and a salute to another distinguished Ia Drang fighter, though of some interest, would have better been relegated to an appendix, a section that includes moving tributes to Moore's beloved wife and to Rick Rescorla, another Ia Drang vet who later died on 9/11 leading thousands safely out of the Twin Towers. A worthy and wise successor to one of the best books ever about combat in Vietnam.

Table of Contents:

Foreword H. Norman Schwarzkopf Schwarzkopf, H. Norman

Ch. 1 Back to Our Battlefields 1

Ch. 2 Conversations with the Enemy 19

Ch. 3 You Killed My Battalion! 41

Ch. 4 Traveling in Time 53

Ch. 5 The Backbone of the Army 71

Ch. 6 Back to the Ia Drang! 83

Ch. 7 A Night Alone on the Battlefield 101

Ch. 8 Back to the Hell That Was Albany 113

Ch. 9 Walking the Ground at Dien Bien Phu 129

Ch. 10 The Never-Ending Story 147

Ch. 11 Lessons on Leadership 157

Ch. 12 On War 187

Epilogue 199

App Two Heroes for America 205

Acknowledgments 227

An Appeal 231

Index 233

Book about: Route 66 Adventure Handbook or Kauai Trailblazer

Jupiter's Travels: Four Years Around the World on a Triumph

Author: Ted Simon

Simon rode a motorcycle around the world in the seventies, when such a thing was unheard of. In four years he covered 78,000 miles through 45 countries, living with peasants and presidents, in prisons and palaces, through wars and revolutions. What distinguishes this book is that Simon was already an accomplished writer. In 25 years this book has changed many lives, and inspired many to travel, including Ewan McGregor.