As the Vietnam War drags on, many in the United States are angry— or indifferent about the war and with the soldiers who fought it. Three people experience the animosity and apathy that threatened to split our nation in two.

A twenty year old soldier returns home with a spinal cord injury. Expecting a world that is sympathetic to his experience, he instead discovers one that criticizes and condemns. Assigned to Walter Reed Hospital for rehabilitation, he soon finds himself drawn into self-doubt and dread while having to face the challenge of his physical limitations. As he attempts to work through the psychological demons that plague him, he meets other soldiers that are going through their own kind of hell—disfigurement, isolation, and despair.

A young nurse completes her tour of duty and returns home with her own scars of war to a husband that no longer knows her. As she tries to reintroduce herself into the normality of everyday life, she learns just how much the war has “wounded” her.

A 21-year old student nurse prepares to go to Vietnam while facing the discouragement of her peers. Torn between loyalty for her country and the ever-present protest of ending the war, she is unsure of her decision

These three lives intersect and each learns how to triumph over their past, their present, and their uncertain futures.

Cassilly brilliantly cuts to the human side of one of the most controversial wars in American history. His book is a stunning tribute to American soldiers, their loyalty to each other and their determination to reclaim their lives, told through memories, dreams and stories. It is an accurate and chilling account of the social and emotional climate that these young men and women encountered upon their return and during their service.

 

About the Author



Joe Cassilly served in Vietnam as a Ranger in the U.S. Army. He has a psychology degree from the University of Arizona and a law degree from the University of Baltimore. Mr. Cassilly taught law at a community college, served as a criminal prosecutor and has been the State Attorney of Harford County, Maryland from 1982 to the present. He received the prestigious honor of Outstanding Marylander with a Disability, and this year was elected President of the National District Attorneys Association. He lives with his wife, Diana in Benson, Maryland. Decoration for Valor is his first novel.