After the Storm: A Vietnam Veteran's Reflections (Hellgate Memories Series,)

Rating:
Summary: Important and relevant to our understanding of ourselves.
Review: I truly never did so much thinking after reading this book, and I'm still thinking.... As I read, I felt like my vision was getting clearer about how Vietnam made such an impact on not only the veterans' lives, but on their families and friends for the rest of all of their lives. There were many passages that I really would admit are steeped in true wisdom....a wisdom which can be gained only through experience and careful contemplation over many years.....one of my favorite passages was towards the end regarding how the author thought he could best explain what the healing process is like.....with mention of an oppressive dense rain forest bearing down on you, and then you "swallow the sun"........ spectacular....these are the kind of descriptions that jump out at the reader and stick with you for a long time.... I feel that Paul Drew is a little less of a complete stranger now......his reflections make the reader feel like a friend.

Rating:
Summary: Experience--Reflection--Wisdom--Healing.................
Review: I truly never did so much thinking after reading this book, and I'm still thinking.... As I read, I felt like my vision was getting clearer about how Vietnam made such an impact on not only the veterans' lives, but on their families and friends for the rest of all of their lives. There were many passages that I really would admit are steeped in true wisdom....a wisdom which can be gained only through experience and careful contemplation over many years.....one of my favorite passages was towards the end regarding how the author thought he could best explain what the healing process is like.....with mention of an oppressive dense rain forest bearing down on you, and then you "swallow the sun"........ spectacular....these are the kind of descriptions that jump out at the reader and stick with you for a long time.... I feel that Paul Drew is a little less of a complete stranger now......his reflections make the reader feel like a friend.

Rating:
Summary: saw him speak
Review: I was fortunate enough to have Paul Drew come to one of my college classes to discuss his book and i must say his talk was just as powerful as his book. what i really enjoyed was the way he wrote as a normal kind of guy. it was almost as if i was sitting there and he was talking to me like one might talk in a bar. i highly recommend this book

Rating:
Summary: Important and relevant to our understanding of ourselves.
Review: Paul Drew gives the world his diary. His Viet Nam experience is the cover story, but the change in the man is the book. Drew expresses in an intimate and engaging format the impact of war, politics and social upheaval on an everyman. "After the Storm" is a strong statement against streo-typing and against our desire to have history wrapped up in a neat little package. This is an important work in that it combines a valid perspective on the American century with an Odysseus-like inner journey. Highly recommended for the generation that came after the war.