No comments about Robert E. Lee: Confederate General (Famous Figures of the Civil War Era).

No comments about On Falcons' Wings: An Intrepid Generation.

5 comments about Coyote Jack: Drawing Meaning from Life and Vietnam--A Memoir.

1. This book is a very interesting confluence of personal combat experience, difficult family dynamics, and the pain of unresolved emotions and questions of purpose told by an articulate and complex man. "Coyote Jack" Thomas begins his narrative, covering almost a third of the text, with his immediate family history as a child and some of the resultant dysfunction he suffers in the crucible created by his domineering and demanding father and shared by his mostly silent mother and co-suffering brothers. He then carries the reader into his post-Vietnam life as a husband and father, now further burdened by the added demons brought home from the war. His angst, pain and inability to understand it all are very real; leading this reviewer to be at once angry, sad, frustrated and anxious to share with the author some sense of relief. The remainder of the book, concentrating on his participation as a leader of Mobile Advisory Team III-56, attached to the Regional Forces/Popular Forces in Hau Nghia Province, is a slow but steady revelation of how Jack becomes disillusioned with the war, yet is proud of what he and his team are trying to do for the people of Viet Nam. The dangers, conflicts, frustrations and successes meld into an entertaining read; not full of "shoot `em up" combat stories, but rich with the dynamics of men in conflict. Jack ends the story with updates on those he served with and some of the events in his later life which have brought some resolution to his uncertainties about life, love and survival. This is a good book which should resonate well with Viet Nam veterans and those who have suffered from human conflict, both physical and psychological.



2. Reviewed by Marcelline `Marcy' Burns for Reader Views (10/06)
   
   Memoirs, by definition, are written in order to remember and record. They are life snapshots of people and places filtered through the eyes of the writer, dimmed by the passage of time. Sometimes they are distorted by flawed perceptions or unresolved fears and angers. At their best, they bring a measure of resolution and peace to the writers.
   
   Why specifically did Jack Lyndon Thomas write the memoir, "Coyote Jack?" There probably is no single and complete answer to that question, but his words suggest to this reader 1) that the son, Jack Thomas, wrote in hopes of reconciling, in memory, with his now-deceased father, 2) that the father, Jack Thomas, wrote of his failures as a parent in hopes that his daughters will understand and forgive, and 3) that the soldier in Vietnam, Lt. Thomas, was compelled to write to find meaning and resolution of guilt.
   
   Initially, "Coyote Jack" seems to be a book most likely to be enjoyed by men. Many women will find the accounts of unloving and aggressive male-male interactions puzzling and disturbing. Many of us don't understand and have little interest in military matters, violent behaviors (testosterone-fueled?), or macho actions. The many pictures will likely get a mixed review by female readers; some are fascinating, others are entirely uninteresting. But keep reading.
   
   The poems that appear at the beginning of the chapters seem to reflect a more sensitive observer than one might expect from the narrative of "Coyote Jack." Is it possible that beneath the bluster there is a kind and caring man? This is a good read for men, and it will also speak to women. Read on.
   
   The author's writing is best when it is simple and concise. On the other hand, some passages don't quite work for this reader. Consider the following: "...Fireflies flitted in random flight patterns. Even water buffalo seemed to move with a lumbering grace. ... poignant scents from incense, cooking fires, nuoc mam, decayed vegetation, mud, dung, and body odor melded together."
   
   The treasure of "Coyote Jack" lies in his telling of the small details of Vietnam life. The author's narrative - not his fanciful descriptions - but the straightforward stories bring the people and places alive. Appealing children, stoic adults, terrible deprivations, horrific accidents, humidity and mud, and ever-present danger - the listing for this rich account could be long indeed, and altogether it allows the country and its people to become very real. .
   
   Mr. Thomas doesn't insult the reader by claiming that his return trip to Vietnam miraculously resolved all of the painful issues accumulated over his lifetime, culminating in Vietnam. He wrestled with many of his demons, and some of them are subdued. He is honest with the reader, and that is enough.
   
   You may want to read this book if you struggle with family-related guilt and remorse. Certainly, "Coyote Jack" is a worthwhile read it if you have a connection with Vietnam. I am very glad it came into my hands, since I will soon travel to that part of the world.



3. Jack Lyndon Thomas writes with an amazing sense of insight into a man's soul. A product of an era of dramatic change in values, respect for authority, and a redefining of patriotism, Thomas has shown a tenderness, and understanding of human needs, emotional, mental, and physical. His story speaks for thousands of men who served their country valiantly in a cause of questionable ideals.
   
   In Coyote Jack, the author has allowed himself to become vulnerable, as he related the complex issues of life and personal discovery by paralleling his experiences in Viet Nam with reconciling his own personal search for satisfaction and creative expression.
   
   Thomas described exploring and embracing the culture of Viet Nam, of trying to understand the politics, and religion of the country, and of his appreciation for the natural features of the landscape and the topography of the countryside. He described in words of poetic beauty the peasantry that inhabited the rural areas.
   
   The author went on to describe the ineffectual leadership, the ill-defined goals and objectives of the country's leaders. He told of the internal conflict he felt in the midst of the external conflict being experienced all around. This was often traced back to the lack of solid support and execution of the politicians and the man on the street in the United States.
   
   I particularly enjoyed the profound poems and statements that introduced each chapter. Part II of the book with Maps and beautiful colored photographs awakened all my senses to the culture, the country, and the people who impacted the life of young Jack Lyndon Thomas through his Viet Nam experience.
   
   Thomas is a gifted, creative, and articulate. This is a remarkable account of a period of United States History that needs to be revisited and understood. "Coyote Jack" is a book for every veteran, for every serviceman and women currently serving our country, and for everyone in a position of leadership, influencing decisions being made in planning our country's current military strategy.



4. While the author was in Vietnam, I was a high school ROTC student. I rarely watched the news, because the war was too painful to follow. But I have always admired the Americans who served there. Most, like the author, didn't want to go, but they served honorably and were forgotten when they returned home.
   
   Vietnam haunted the author for over thirty years. This memoir is about his journey back to Vietnam to visit the battlefields he had once known so intimately.
   
   he describes in detail his year in Vietnam. He felt sorry for the dead Vietcong that he saw sprawled in the rice paddies, their bodies contorted. He felt sickened when one of his Vietnamese allies died. But fortunately he never saw a dead American soldier.
   
   Thomas's book includes photos of himself as a young Army lieutenant in Vietnam and later as a gray-haired accountant. In all his photos, he smiles. Yet in the book he describes the rage that he had fought with for most of his life, and the inner peace that he finally embraced.



5. All MACV combat advisors should find this book revealing and it will perhaps awaken experiences long ago forgotten. Jack Thomas describes the Vietnam War in terms that we can all understand - good and bad. I bought copies of this book for all my kids because Jack tells our story in a way that I am incapable of doing.
   
   Ray Wing

No comments about Our Fight: Writings by Veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, Spain 1936-1939.

1 comments about In Those Days: A Diplomat Remembers (Adst-Dacor Diplomats and Diplomacy Series).

1. This book is a realistic view of the glamorous and not so glamourous sides of the foreign service. It shows the beholdenness to politicians of a career FSO. An easy read, it also puts ambition into perspective by showing the tradegies of the author, which I felt was the chief lesson learned from the book. People who desire foreign service careers should definitely read the book. The lessons of a past ambassador are invaluble to those who aspire to the same goal.

No comments about Victory Stolen: The Perspectives of a Helicopter Pilot on the Tet Offensive and Its Aftermath.

No comments about Sisters in War.

No comments about A Magnificent Irishman from Appalachia: The Letters of Lt. James Gildea, First Ohio Light Artillery, Battery L.

4 comments about Jeb Stuart (Civil War Library).

1. I read this book for an analytic book report, and its a very heavy read for someone who just wants a simple biography. It trails off often about battles, and if you want information, you really have to look for it.



2. As a military officer and artist Thomason presents a unique view of a most complex and larger-than-life Civil War legend in this reprinted version of his original book (? 40's). Certainly ranks among the great biographers of Stuart...others are McClellan and Blackford (both served under Stuart) and Burke Davis and Emory Thomas (both of which can be obtained thru Amazon). The book is a "must" for a Stuart devotee and/or serious Civil War student



3. I wanted to give it 3.5 stars... Maj.Gen. "Jeb" Stuart -- flamboyant, a little showy and proud, sometimes very opinonated... tough, stern, and successful in battle... great with the ladies... lover of songs, poetry, and a good laugh, and very gentle to his wife and kids. The book covers the Army of Northern Virginia fairly well and in a very detailed manner, but for this reason, I felt the author sometimes digressed a bit from Stuart's story. Nevertheless, the parts about Stuart are definately colorful. Includes many of Stuart's letters to his wife during the war, as well as some interesting stories about the people around him. Also includes some interesting ink sketches by the author.



4. JEB STUART, WRITTEN BY JOHN W. THOMASON JR. IS SIMPLY MAGNIFICENT. THOMASON BRINGS TO LIFE THIS MYSTERIOUS LEGEND IN A WAY LIKE NO OTHER. HIS VIVID DESCRIPTION OF STUART'S CHILDHOOD, WARLIFE AND DEATH PUTS YOU BACK IN THE MID 1860'S. STUART HIMSELF AND THE CIVIL WAR AS A WHOLE ARE PRESENTED WITH THE UTMOST DETAIL AND PRESCISION. JEB STUART IS ONE OF THE TRUE CIVIL CLASSICS AND IT GIVES YOU THE CLEAREST PICTURE OF THE MAN AND THE TIMES OUT OF ANY BIOGRAPHY I KNOW OF

1 comments about Lincoln and the Radicals.

1. I first read this book in graduate school twenty-five years ago, and while recently rereading it I was impressed anew with its scintillating but remarkably dated analysis. T. Harry Williams argued a very interesting thesis about Abraham Lincoln in this benchmark work in the historiography of the subject. He found that in spite of his personal antipathy toward slavery, Lincoln was moderate in his public statements because he could not afford to compromise his questionable popular base of support as president. Lincoln recognized that his administration's ability to hold the rest of the nation together in the wake of southern secession was dependent upon his walking a narrow path of acceptability to a coalition of factions with sometimes divergent beliefs upon the slavery issue, that without enough support his position as president would be undermined and he would never be able to accomplish anything worthwhile. In spite of personal desires, it was a question for Lincoln of first things first. In the end Lincoln was prompted to end slavery by executive order by radicals within his own party who pressed for emancipation.
   
   Lincoln demonstrated, according to Williams, a spirit of pragmatism. To demonstrate this he once compared government to a machine. If something goes wrong with the machine, what should one do? The reactionary might say, "Don't fool with it, you'll ruin it?" The radical might say, "It's no good, get rid of it and find a new one." The pragmatist would try to fix the machine, to remove the defective part and add a new one, but only after carefully scrutinizing the situation to ensure that his action was correct (T. Harry Williams, "Abraham Lincoln: Pragmatic Democrat," in Norman A. Graebner, ed., "The Enduring Lincoln: Lincoln Sesquicentennial Lectures at the University of Illinois" [University of Illinois Press, 1959], pp. 26 27).
   
   In this book Lincoln's moderation is very much admired by Williams, while the radicals were "Jacobin" revolutionaries intent on destroying the fabric of the nation. This position essentially embraces the larger thesis present about the Civil War in the 1930s and 1940s; that it was a "repressible conflict" that could have been avoided had extremists on both sides been willing to compromise. Williams viewed the radicals as dogmatic and inflexible in dealing with a significant problem in American history, while Lincoln was a pragmatist. Such people as the radicals in Congress, led by old antislavery Whigs such as Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner, argued for a ruthless prosecution of the war and a punishment of the South for its rebellion. They established a Committee on the Conduct of the War that pressed Lincoln daily about the aggressive prosecution of the war with Republican rather than Democratic Party generals and punishment of the South. They were all opposed to slavery but the manner in which it would be eliminated--gradually or immediately, with owners paid off or not, and the status of the freed slaves--were hotly contested. In this book Lincoln is very much a pragmatic hero and the radicals very much obstinate ideologues.
   
   More recent interpretations of Lincoln's relationship to the radicals in his party are quite different from what Williams believed. Hans L. Trefousse argued in "The Radical Republicans" (Alfred A. Knopf, 1969) that they were Lincoln's vanguard for racial justice. They served as lightning rods for the antislavery agenda that Lincoln and all members of his party agreed upon. Having been elected to Congress from districts supportive of their aggressiveness, the radicals served as "blocking backs" for Lincoln and made it possible for him to move out on the abolition of slavery more readily than he would have been able to do otherwise. This is an interpretation that is more in keeping with recent trends in the historiography rather than Williams's more than 60-year-old study, but it also deserves continuing revision as new documentary materials and new perspectives on the era emerge.