A Chaplain Remembers Vietnam

Like a visit to the Vietnam Memorial, the simplicity of Col. Hopkins' memoir allows the reader a glimpse of something holy. It is a great gift, to be transparent enough to let the sacred show through oneself and one's work. The chaplain's sense of humor -- also a gift -- shines here and there, and his perception of honor illuminates the entire work. Anyone wishing more information about the realities of the Vietnam war will do well to read this book.

The story and photos tell a very interesting view of going off to war. I had no ideal Chaplains had to do so much. I am using the book for a class report---the details and pictures of the Vietnam war from his perspective are highly recommended. Well written. My thanks to all the Chaplains in our country's service.

An honest, ground-level, and poignant true story of an Army chaplain, Colonel Sam Hopkins, who served with one of the most highly decorated units of the Vietnam war---4th Battalion, 60th Artillery (Dusters). This plainspoken book is highly recommended because it contains none of the vulgarism, horrors, and often John Wayne bravado depicted in many war narratives. Armed with only a Bible and Kodak Instamatic camera, Hopkins takes the reader on a somber, yet at times humerous, journey into the Vietnam war and the lives of the young American soldiers who fought there; faithfully reminding them time and again, that their frail lives belonged to a higher authority---to "Supreme Six," the Army's slang for God. His feelings, doubts, and fears, before, during, and after the war so clearly presented give this book an unequivocal place in Vietnam war literature.