Nam Sense: Surviving Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division
Arthur Wiknik
Jul 2005 · Casemate
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33 reviews
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305
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About this ebook
A candid memoir of being sent to Vietnam at age nineteen, witnessing the carnage of Hamburger Hill, and returning to an America in turmoil.
Arthur Wiknik was a teenager from New England when he was drafted into the US Army in 1968, shipping out to Vietnam early the following year. Shortly after his arrival on the far side of the world, he was assigned to Camp Evans near the northern village of Phong Dien, only thirty miles from Laos and North Vietnam. On his first jungle patrol, his squad killed a female Viet Cong who turned out to have been the local prostitute. It was the first dead person he had ever seen.
Wiknik's account of life and death in Vietnam includes everything from heavy combat to faking insanity to get some R & R. He was the first in his unit to reach the top of Hamburger Hill, and between sporadic episodes of combat, he mingled with the locals; tricked unwitting US suppliers into providing his platoon with hard-to-get food; defied a superior and was punished with a dangerous mission; and struggled with himself and his fellow soldiers as the antiwar movement began to affect them.
Written with honesty and sharp wit by a soldier who was featured on a recent History Channel documentary about Vietnam, Nam Sense spares nothing and no one in its attempt to convey what really transpired for the combat soldier during this unpopular war. It is not about glory, mental breakdowns, flashbacks, or self-pity. The GIs Wiknik lived and fought with during his yearlong tour were not drug addicts or war criminals or gung-ho killers. They were there to do their duty as they were trained, support their comrades—and get home alive.
Recipient of an Honorable Mention from the Military Writers Society of America.
Arthur Wiknik was a teenager from New England when he was drafted into the US Army in 1968, shipping out to Vietnam early the following year. Shortly after his arrival on the far side of the world, he was assigned to Camp Evans near the northern village of Phong Dien, only thirty miles from Laos and North Vietnam. On his first jungle patrol, his squad killed a female Viet Cong who turned out to have been the local prostitute. It was the first dead person he had ever seen.
Wiknik's account of life and death in Vietnam includes everything from heavy combat to faking insanity to get some R & R. He was the first in his unit to reach the top of Hamburger Hill, and between sporadic episodes of combat, he mingled with the locals; tricked unwitting US suppliers into providing his platoon with hard-to-get food; defied a superior and was punished with a dangerous mission; and struggled with himself and his fellow soldiers as the antiwar movement began to affect them.
Written with honesty and sharp wit by a soldier who was featured on a recent History Channel documentary about Vietnam, Nam Sense spares nothing and no one in its attempt to convey what really transpired for the combat soldier during this unpopular war. It is not about glory, mental breakdowns, flashbacks, or self-pity. The GIs Wiknik lived and fought with during his yearlong tour were not drug addicts or war criminals or gung-ho killers. They were there to do their duty as they were trained, support their comrades—and get home alive.
Recipient of an Honorable Mention from the Military Writers Society of America.
A candid memoir of being sent to Vietnam at age nineteen, witnessing the carnage of Hamburger Hill, and returning to an America in turmoil.
Arthur Wiknik was a teenager from New England when he was drafted into the US Army in 1968, shipping out to Vietnam early the following year. Shortly after...
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Ratings and reviews
33 reviews
Terry Kelly
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October 9, 2018
The autobiographical account of a shake and bake Sergeant in the 10 1st Airborne and his experiences in the A Shau valley and his being first to the top of "Hamburger Hill". Interesting read and honest account of a rebellious attitude against gun ho idiot "lifers" and junior officers. Putting his and his mens safety to the fore.
1 person found this review helpful
richard black
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September 22, 2017
Read a lot of books on the subject. This one is just ok and a quick one. Price was right more than anything else.
1 person found this review helpful
K
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January 11, 2023
Super Read. easy to follow,very thorough account of War in The Nam.
About the author
Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication.
Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer who lives and works in Connecticut. He has written a wide variety of articles for publication. Arthur Wiknik, Jr., is an engineer wh...
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