DC Public Library System

Charlie Company journeys home, the forgotten impact on the wives of Vietnam veterans, Andrew Wiest

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 381-389) and index

platesillustrations

index present

non fiction

Charlie Company journeys home

bibliography

1050876676

Andrew Wiest

the forgotten impact on the wives of Vietnam veterans

The human experience of the Vietnam War is almost impossible to grasp - the camaraderie, the fear, the smell, the pain. Men were transformed into soldiers, and then into warriors. These warriors had wives who loved them and shared in their transformations. Some marriages were strengthened, while for others there was all too often a dark side, leaving men and their families emotionally and spiritually battered for years to come. Focusing in on just one company's experience of war and its eventual homecoming, Andrew Wiest shines a light on the shared experience of combat and both the darkness and resiliency of war's aftermath"--, Publisher's description"The men of Charlie Company were a small, tight-knit group, representative of the melting pot of America that served in Vietnam. The women of Charlie Company had sent happy, idealistic young men to war. Some returned tempered by the experience of combat, while the wives of others welcomed home men whom they no longer recognized--but everyone, both husbands and wives, had irrevocably changed. Some families strove to set Vietnam aside, while others wrestled with the darkness of war's aftermath as wives stood by their husbands through homelessness, alcoholism, and physical abuse. Some couldn't stand the pain and left the loves of their lives forever. Some reclaimed their loved ones from the brink of oblivion. Some had only memories to cherish. Using stories gathered from the women themselves, Andrew Wiest reveals who these wives and girlfriends were, and how the crucible of war indelibly changed them. Hopes and dreams were often shattered but many of these women found an inner steel, a determination not only to survive but to thrive against the odds in an America that too often forgot its veterans and their families. War was the anvil on which these young lives were beaten and forged anew, for good or bad. But While history has ultimately redeemed their husbands, the contributions and difficulties of the wives have remained unnoticed, leaving them alone in a crowded world. This is their story"--Dust jacket

The women of Charlie Company -- Marriage and training -- Wartime -- Days of terror -- Loss -- War's end and homecoming -- Living with Vietnam