A Boy at War By Bill Maier: A Heartbreaking Memoir

This book is for those readers who want to know more about what is going on – for real – on the battlefield. What you get from A Boy at War is more than just a historical or journalist account of it. It’s about the emotions of a boy on the brink of manhood who was thrown into the deep end without knowing what to expect. The author brings you an account of personal experience on the battlefield in the gruesome Vietnam War in the 1960s.

You’ll never think about war the same way after reading this real-life experience of a young William (Bill) Maier. This book is about the chaos of random violence where people are killed on the front lines where there are no rules but to survive.

Spoiler-free Summary

When reading the accounts of the war from the pen of the author, the main thing that stands out is the many dead left behind. What’s worse is that these dead are from both sides, and that means many friends you used to laugh and have lunch with – a real tragedy.

A Boy at War is a memoir, and the pages reveal every emotion the young man experienced while facing the enemy. The book states that Bill Maier was in Vietnam in 1967, so he was there during the brutal 1968 attack launched by the Vietcong forces.

He was part of the 120 Marines who were eminent in the 24-hour standoff against an attack by the North Vietnamese forces. The South Vietnamese forces and their ally, the US, sustained heavy losses before they could finally repel the onslaught.

On that day, about 32 marines died, and hundreds of Vietnam soldiers’ bodies were lying on the battlefield. That was an image Bill and many of his comrades couldn’t get out of their heads.

For years, those young men lived through these moments every day of their lives and relived the emotional turmoil of the war long after they left the front lines. Readers will also find many chapters of counseling the author had with thousands of veterans with the same experiences.

Everything about that war so many years ago still haunts me,

the author says in his book, and this is completely understandable.

My Take Away on A Boy at War

A Boy at War has a lot of in-depth information, which might be a bit overwhelming for the casual reader. But the serious reader who loves accounts of real-life historical events will find the book intriguing and eye-opening.

The book is not for everybody; younger readers may not feel a connection with the events. The historical account is primarily aimed at those who still remember Vietnam and how it had an impact on everyday American life.

It’s a time in history many would prefer to forget, but unfortunately, there are those who can’t. The war was a massive part of Maier’s life and had an impact on his future decisions, including counseling veteran soldiers.

That’s also the reason why you’ll find many hours of counseling as part of this book. You can’t help but feel heartbroken for the soldiers who had to be involved in the deaths of many people and had to live with the consequences for years, if not decades, after.

Every part of the war is meticulously woven into this memoir/novel by the author to give you a rich account of the situation. The overall vision of the book is to provide the reader with a first-hand account of the emotional toll war has on soldiers.

The author has much experience, not just in what happens on the battlefield but also in how to cope with it afterward. The war-commended author provides the reader with all his experience and more in this book.

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