That Time, That Place, That War - Margaret Brown - Bog

That Time, That Place, That War chronicles the turbulent 60s in a tiny country halfway around the world in that crazy Vietnam War. The infantrymen called themselves grunts from the sound they made picking up their rucksacks that weighed at least 50 pounds and contained their survival gear for three days. They nicknamed the unfamiliar machines of war as well as each other. A helicopter with dual rotors that could carry 20 troops was the Jolly Green Giant; any aircraft mounted with machine guns or rapid-fire weapons to support troops on the ground was Puff the Magic Dragon. Their words (sarcasm, black humor, nonchalance, slang, military jargon) given here become a small story taken from grunts, reporters, American and Vietnamese vets, propaganda, poetry by grunts and vets, augmented with photos from vets. They created mantras to get them through the worst. "It don't mean nothin'" when it really did. Absurdities such as a body bag falling out of a chopper called for "There it is." Sharing the hardships of fatigue, 100 percent humidity, not enough water, razor-sharp elephant grass, and the accidental firing of an M-15 caught in a wait-a-minute vine in the jungle meant a shrug or a small shake of the head and "That's the 'Nam."--Publisher's website.