Rating: 
Summary: Must Read
Review: Its simply one of the best books I have ever read.
Rating: 
Summary: My favorite text book
Review: My military history class used this book as one of our main text books. It was and still is the only text book that I have ever enjoyed reading.
Caputo uses great writing skills to take the reader through his tour as a Marine Corp's officer in Vietnam. I have read many other books on Vietnam, but this book is exciting while keeping a respectful tone for the war. This is an excellent book for educating civilians about the atrocities that the soldiers experienced. This book will be eye opening for everyone!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Excellent Excellent!!!!
Review: I read this book on my train and plane rides on my recent trip to Europe, and I seriously could not put it down. Finished it and felt completely immersed into the world of a Vietnam infantryman. Highly recommended. Excellent writing style, vivid descriptions, engaging story.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Infantryman's Treatise
Review: Philip Caputo's Rumor of War is an excellent autobiographical study of the infantry officer's plight during the Vietnam War. What made the book especially valuable to me was Caputo's emotional narration of the horrors of war. Basically I agree with most of the other reviews praising this book, the only thing I would like to share are my own reflections of this era. His story brought back unhappy memories of a war based upon body counts. Which, as the author points out, were routinely falsified. The devastation of war on the youth during the Vietnam years has marked our views of war and has changed us forever. No longer will we accept a governmental decree of war without first thinking to ourselves the cost of such a conflict.This is very good book and one worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Mallowcups for Philip
Review: Truth makes free--that was the odd thought flitting in the background when I read this book. I could have chosen a history book to try and understand the Vietnam war; I'm glad someone recommended 'A Rumor of War' because it is not often truth we encounter in history books, only facts. Understanding brings about a curious freedom and that was my sense upon finishing this book. I felt like I had faced and understood a grim untouchable, and in the understanding have been made free--though I don't understand how or why. Perhaps it's because this book is Testimony and I am a fool for any man's Testimony. Philip Caputo told the truth of his Vietnam, and in that alone is something heroic and beautiful. Never before have I been made to understand the Vietnam war; and if I still do not understand it, exactly, at least I have been there through Philip Caputo and have an empathy I never did for the veterans of this war...
Rating:
Summary: Not your father's Vetnam War book
Review: Told from the perspective of a green 2nd lietenant in the USMC this book is among the most compelling Vietnam war documentaries. The pendulum of human emotion is vividly displayed in this honest portrayal of hate, boredom, fear and despair. Caputo relates his emotions and thoughts extremely honestly and doesn't seem to be putting on airs about his time in Vietnam. The book follows his progression from gung ho patriot to pessimistic veteran during the early years of the war. His desire to lead front line troops gives way to descriptions of nights on the front lines and the hours of monotony and boredom. The honesty in this book is compelling. It is as though you are forced to experience and feel the emotions of a young man who is realizing for the first time that things in this world are not quite as rosy as they may appear from a distance. The black and white world of Americana takes on a few shades of gray in this excellent missive.
Rating:
Summary: A riveting view of the Vietnam War
Review: Without a doubt, this is one of the most disturbing books that I have ever read! I received a copy of this book several years ago as a Christmas present, and it languished on my shelf as I really was not interested in ANYTHING to do with the Vietnam War. I picked it up as bedtime reading to help me sleep, and it did anything BUT help me sleep! Caputo presents a rare glimpse into the idiocy that governed the 10+ year conflict that we call the Vietnam War. He exposes the fallacy of the casualty reports that those of us who lived throught that piece of history remember so well from the reports on the evening news as well as the oxymoron known as "army intelligence". This should be required reading for anyone who now supports going to war with Iraq as it demonstrates how easily a seemingly "just" cause can degenerate into a hopeless situation with no end in sight.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant writer documents his Vietnam experience
Review: It is hard to imagine that such a gifted writer is also capable of being an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps. In "A Rumor of War," author Philip Caputo offers us an intimate portrait of the Vietnam conflict. Caputo uses a powerful lens and provides an up close examination of what the war is like for a Marine infantry "grunt." This book is about the Vietnam danger, the boredom, the casualties, the weather and the mood of the American soldier. Throughout the book one can feel the soldiers enormous desire to "go home" and abandon the macho madness of the Vietnam tragedy. Caputo's protagonist, the element that moved the plot is the Marine's desire to survive. The author brilliantly uses the constant threat of "death" to act as a powerful antagonist that lurks from page to page. Best of all, this book documents the brutality of war using the language of the Marine "grunt." Hence, it provides a front row seat to the thoughts and emotions of those who were condemned to risk their lives each day while in Vietnam. This is a great book that deserves attention..especially from the leaders of the nation who audaciously talk of war while never having the courage to set foot on a battlefield.
Rating:
Summary: A More Than Worthy Read
Review: Being an avid Vietnam War reader, I must say having read many other books that, A Rumor of War, let's you know what Vietnam was really about. The horror of losing friends, the terror of being in the bush knowing and anticipating that fateful step that might trip and enemy mine. Philip Caputo expresses with honor how the Vietnam War robbed all soldiers of innocence, and turned young men old. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Very good description of the ground war.
Review: I read this book when it was first published. In my opinion, it is one of the best of the Vietnam memoirs. It is a must-read for anyone wishing to understand the Vietnam War...
| 
