Victor Six: The Saga of America's Youngest, Most Decorated Officer in Vietnam

By the time he was 21, Christian had risen to the rank of Army captain in the American forces fighting in Vietnam and had amassed considerable experience leading a reconnaisance unit whose missions were guerilla warfare, harassment and interdiction. Though something of a rebel, he was also a brilliant leader, admired by the men in the platoon, which had been dubbed ``Christian's Butchers.'' In due course, he was badly wounded and hospitalized, returned to combat and then was seriously burned by napalm. Returning to the U.S., he resumed his status as a warrior, this time fighting for Vietnam veterans' rights to education, job training and, above all, appreciation by their fellow citizens. Writing here with Hoffer ( Midnight Express ), Christian, now a business consultant, makes a strong case for the oft-maligned servicepeople who went to war in Vietnam simply because their government told them to--and his pleas for an understanding of what they have suffered will leave no reader indifferent. Photos. (Sept.)