This is the harrowing journal of an American Marine fighting in Vietnam. Scared but brave, Patrick must deal with all of the dangers and emotions of life in a war zone.

		February 9, 1968 A lot of guys were feeling really down today, because two of our gunny sergeants got killed today. One mortar took out both of them. They did everything right – heard the pop, ducked, and ran for the nearest hole, but a round landed right on top of them. Nothing you can do to prevent it. Bad luck, Vietnam-style. Those two men had more time combined in the Marines than most of the rest of us put together, so I guess that makes us all feel extra shook-up about it. And the cloud cover is so heavy that no one’s even going to fly up here to take them away today. Maybe tomorrow, they said. Or the next day. If nothing more important comes up in the meantime. Shows the respect you get for devoting your whole adult life to serving your country. All I want to do is go home – and I’ve got eleven months to go.