Red Thunder, Tropic Lightning: The World of a Combat Division in Vietnam

In this gripping oral history of the Vietnam War, soldiers of the 25th Division recount the ways the war was actually fought and the psychological pressures they endured. Bergerud ( The Dynamics of Defeat ) divides his material into broad categories such as weapons (``The Tools of the Trade''); medical care, from the wounding of a soldier through his evacuation and treatment; the antipathy between frontline soldiers and support troops, and relations between Vietnamese civilians and American GIs. Raw memories of combat form the core of this impressive book, as the veterans recall their experiences in a viciously hostile environment--ambushes, minefields, friendly fire (``I was more afraid of our firepower,'' says one vet, ``than of the enemy's''). The men also complain about the paucity of experienced NCOs and the crippling officer-rotation system. Only one group of memories is wholly positive: those of comradeship. Photos. History Book Club selection. (Mar.)