"A terrific book about courage and cowardice, honor and betrayal, suffering and the death, and the indomitability of the human spirit...." -Washington Post "An amazing work that could make you cry over descriptions of bravery so bold and big....It is about the soul of a nation....This is a stunning book." - Boston Globe "In Timberg's telling of their specific combat experiences, insightful angles on their subsequent careers emerge....A well-researched and well-written account of five interesting lives." - Booklist Robert Timberg weaves together the lives of Annapolis graduates John McCain, James Webb, Oliver North, Robert McFarlane, and John Poindexter to reveal how the Vietnam War continues to haunt America.
Casting all five men as metaphors for a legion of well-meaning if ill-starred warriors, Timberg probes the fault line between those who fought the war and those who used money, wit, and connections to avoid battle.
A riveting tale that illuminates the flip side of the fabled Vietnam generation: those who went.
