The Light Side of Damnation

by William F. Lee

Book Overview

War is serious business. However, within all the torment of war, the strongest of bonds are created and nurtured. Through these ties and perhaps because of them, instances of wit along with humorous... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1425944736
• ISBN13: 9781425944735
• Release Date: July 2006
• Publisher: Authorhouse
• Length: 428 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A brilliant perspective of war never seen before

William F Lee has given us a glimpse of war from a soldier's perspective. This is nothing new, but what Lee does is show us the human side of war, something that can only be shown by someone who has experienced war in full spectrum. War is hell. No one can argue that. And it's amazing how the human spirit is able to resist eroding under the pressures of war. It's this spirit that is captured by Lee. And it's this spirit that, in my mind, Lee refers to in his title. This is not a positive portrayal of war. This is a portrayal of the human spirit surviving war. It's basically an autobiographical account of Lee's own experiences told through the main character, a gritty Marine Captain with a knack for leadership, brilliant military skill, and a mouth that often gets him in trouble. In the first part of the book, we experience war in the field with the "grunts" and see much of what the warriors of Vietnam saw. In the second part, the main character begrudgingly takes on the role of General's aide, and we see war from the perspective of the "top brass". Along the way, Lee tells of meeting Hollywood celebrities, talented artists and front-line troops, with the latter bringing more of a sense of honor than any of the others. Overall, this book is a brilliant piece of work and I thoroughly enjoyed every page. I highly recommend this to anyone with a military background or an interest in military history. Mr. Lee has done his Corps proud!

A Novel That is a Thinly Disguised Marine Memoir

Once you catch on to the fact that is a "novel" (as it is mostly based on the author's own personal Vietnam War experiences) it reads much more interesting than as any novel. Author William F. Lee uses different names, adds a few new characters and a some embellishments to enhance the story telling of his most unusual "tour of duty". In his book "The Light Side of Damnation" we get an insider look at a war experience that the rest of us who were there never saw or experienced first hand. The main character Marine Captain Barney Quinn is loosely based on the author himself. So the view of the story gets told through his eyes. The interesting part of this book's background is that all of the encounters with celebrities in the story are real events that actually happened. It seems that the author had chance to meet and greet some of those mega stars who went to Nam to support the troops. I was duly impressed with his meeting singer Nancy Sinatra, author John Seinbeck, Phyllis Diller, Bob Hope, Joey Heatherton, Martha Raye, Robert Mitchum, and of course, Mosses himself--Charlton Heston. I cannot think of any other veteran who got to meet and greet that many and I am leaving several off that list that are mentioned in the story. His story deals with his duty as an aide to a general. That is a world that regular troops never see and know little to nothing about. That in itself makes this book inviting for old veterans like myself. His book is as the title implies "light" humor and it makes the story entertaining and enjoyable. This is not your "blood and guts" and foul-language-laced-war-story but more of a thinking man's journey. It has lots of the familiar places for a Nam story including Marble Mountain, China Beach, Monkey Mountain, Da Nang, Saigon and all kinds of places that are called by their evaluation or by a number like Hill 22. There are racial incidents, untrustworthy South Vietnamese soldiers (ARVNs) and tales about the care and feeding (both the body and the ego) of the general's staff. Then are some things that regular grunts would never experience in any war zone--like a ride in a USAF VIP Lear Jet to get back to base from R & R. The story is well written and easy to follow. The characters feel real and alive. The dialog works to bring the action and the plot all together. One of the things that make this story a work of fiction rather than a non-fiction memoir (besides the name changes) is the creative and enhanced dialog which pulls the book along and makes it a joy to read. Lee does a wonderful job of giving readers a picture of the world he experienced in Vietnam. His main character Captain Quinn is a likable focus of a good tale. The author has a flare for writing and telling a story that makes it a pleasure to read. You will be drawn into this story page by page and will not want to put it down until you are finished!