Rating: 
Summary: A gripping Vietman narrative
Review: "Platoon Leader: A Memoir of Command in Combat," by James R. McDonough, chronicles the author's experiences as an officer in the Vietnam War from 1970-71. His platoon is charged with manning an outpost next to the village of Truong Lam.
This is a fascinating, well-written account. McDonough fills his narrative with vivid details that really made his story come alive in my mind. He doesn't flinch at describing the goriest and most horrific images of war. There are also moments of irony and bitter humor. Also noteworthy is the informative material about tactics used in Vietnam. And the author humanizes the story by touching on such "down-and-dirty" issues as the latrine his platoon used.
McDonough's story is populated with a compelling cast of characters. Particularly intriguing is his exploration of relationships among the various groups he encountered in the war zone--U.S. enlisted men, his fellow Army officers, Vietnamese military allies, enemy forces, and the many civilians caught up in the conflict.
While rich in scenes of combat, "Platoon Leader" goes beyond being just an action-packed war yarn. The book explores the ethics and morals of war. McDonough deals directly with the danger a soldier faces in becoming dehumanized by the brutality of war. He vividly portrays the struggle of a leader to remain wise and humane, yet also tough and resolute, under the most trying of circumstances. This book is both a profound meditation on wartime leadership and a powerful work of American literature.
Rating:
Summary: Gritty. Real life.
Review: A brutally real book. This guy went through hell and managed to come out alive. A fantastic narative on his experiences in Vietnam.
Rating: 
Summary: An Example of the Indirect Approach
Review: After graduating from West Point in 1969, he chose the Infantry and volunteered for Vietnam. This book tells of his experience as a lieutenant in a combat zone, a fortified camp that protected a Vietnamese village. It is about the experience of one platoon leader in combat.The camp was surrounded by booby traps and an enemy hidden in daytime. They were able to repel assaults, but took their share of losses. The landing zone for helicopters was outside the perimeter; it was their sole link to headquarters, and their supply line. Their stay there came to an end when their enemy shelled the neighboring village, causing many casualties. The villagers began moving away, negating the need for their camp. They were moved away to a new area. I think the enemy got a new leader, one who read B.H. Liddell Hart's book "Strategy" and used the "indirect approach" to eliminate the camp.
Rating:
Summary: A very different kind of war story.
Review: Lieutenant Colonel James McDonough has written a truly different memoir of his experiences in Vietnam. I believe that this is because McDonough is a different type of leader and individual. His account of his personal experience in Vietnam is not glorified or gory, it is a more emotional recollection of the things that he did, good and bad, while serving as platoon leader in Vietnam. This book is a must for young military officers as well as those considering military service. There is no bravado in this book, because there is nothing fantastic about killing another man, or trying to help civilians who have been needlessly attacked. The book has a very real quality to it, which I found at different times both unsettling and moving. McDonough is not a killer, he is a soldier and an officer. While he may often silently question the purpose of the things he did or was ordered to do in Vietnam, he never hesitated in carrying out his responsibilities as platoon leader. Although he may have been afraid, he was still responsible for 25 other men who were even more afraid than he was. Overall, one of the best memoirs I have ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Candid and riveting memoir
Review: Lt. McDonough writes of his experiences in Viet Nam in such straight forward language with little embellishment and an honest and humble attitude. This is one of the best written depictions of combat I've ever read. His experiences commanding a platoon in the heart of VC country surpass anything that has been portrayed by Hollywood in terms of the difficulty of the mission and the horror of day to day survival in a combat situation. This is one gritty and tough account of day to day life in the Viet Nam war that should be widely read. Ranks right up there with Philp Caputo ,Michael Herr, Tim O'Brien and Tobias Wolff as a contribution to the definitive written record of grunt life in the war.
Rating:
Summary: A ground-level view of war in Vietnam
Review: Many accounts of our war in Vietnam have been penned, including a number of first-person accounts. But anyone who would like to know exactly how it was to be on the ground with an infantry platoon, as viewed through the perspective of a freshly-minted West Point lieutenant, this is your book. McDonough's platoon is stuck in an area of pacification, in I Corps, infested by Viet Cong and their sympathizers; it is also late in the war, the summer of 1970, and one of the enemies that McDonough has to fight is that of the morale of his men. While the prose style is direct and unadorned, the piling on of the day-by-day platoon operations, the descriptions of the terrain and the people, and, most importantly, McDonough's handling of the varied soldiers who pass through his platoon gives this book a feeling of "being there" far exceeding what a more polished prose style could bring. To prospective authors who would like to find out how the ground war was fought, this book is a must. One comes away with a better appreciation of not only this ugly war, but also a new admiration for those, officers and enlisted personnel, who held our war-weary forces together.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute must read. Fantastic book.
Review: The honesty and humbleness in this book are second to none. This is a fantastic book. Lt McDonough gives a new sense to humanity in the face of insanity, pride in the midst of defeat, and paints a candid portrait of a soldier's heart in time of war.
I have recommended this book to many of the officers and NCO's alike in my unit.
Definetly a top-notch read.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute must read. Fantastic book.
Review: The honesty and humbleness in this book are second to none. This is a fantastic book. Lt McDonough gives a new sense to humanity in the face of insanity, pride in the midst of defeat, and paints a candid portrait of a soldier's heart in time of war.
I have recommended this book to many of the officers and NCO's alike in my unit.
Definetly a top-notch read.
Rating:
Summary: Very worthwhile, interesting story; not quite a 5 star book
Review: This book is worthwhile reading. It's fairly brief and recounts the interesting experience of the author as a platoon leader operating near an important contested village in Vietnam, Truong Lam. He details his own struggles and triumphs as he takes control of his platoon and his responsibilities. Since his service was fairly late, starting in August, 1970, he had his share of problems due to the general war weariness of everyone involved. He spared the true identities of the other characters, which I'm sure was appreciated by his company commander and several others. I didn't rate this a 5 star book because I didn't find the quality of writing to be in the same league as I'd expect from a professional writer. McDonough did a respectable job of writing and used a simple, straightforward style. Still, I thought his experiences would have been more gripping and interesting if he'd had some help from a professional writer. As such, I didn't find it hard to put the book down and was glad it wasn't longer. Basically, I found the writing to diminish the story rather than equal or enhance it. No disrespect to the author, who seems like a fine Army officer and a decent writer. It's just that I think the book could have been better if there had been some writing help. I'd recommend this book to be read along with On Point by Roger Hayes (spelling?). Platoon Leader is a low level officer's experience and On Point an enlisted man's experience. The two books are similar in strengths and weaknesses and the two authors seem to share a lot of the same attributes.
Rating:
Summary: Very worthwhile, interesting story; not quite a 5 star book
Review: This book is worthwhile reading. It's fairly brief and recounts the interesting experience of the author as a platoon leader operating near an important contested village in Vietnam, Truong Lam. He details his own struggles and triumphs as he takes control of his platoon and his responsibilities. Since his service was fairly late, starting in August, 1970, he had his share of problems due to the general war weariness of everyone involved. He spared the true identities of the other characters, which I'm sure was appreciated by his company commander and several others. I didn't rate this a 5 star book because I didn't find the quality of writing to be in the same league as I'd expect from a professional writer. McDonough did a respectable job of writing and used a simple, straightforward style. Still, I thought his experiences would have been more gripping and interesting if he'd had some help from a professional writer. As such, I didn't find it hard to put the book down and was glad it wasn't longer. Basically, I found the writing to diminish the story rather than equal or enhance it. No disrespect to the author, who seems like a fine Army officer and a decent writer. It's just that I think the book could have been better if there had been some writing help. I'd recommend this book to be read along with On Point by Roger Hayes (spelling?). Platoon Leader is a low level officer's experience and On Point an enlisted man's experience. The two books are similar in strengths and weaknesses and the two authors seem to share a lot of the same attributes.
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