Medic!: The Story of a Conscientious Objector in the Vietnam War

An honest narrative of a young man caught up in having to service his country in Vietnam. I enjoyed reading it.

I can't remember when I have ever been so moved and inspired by a book. I have never written a review before, but feel compelled to voice my admiration for Mr. Sherman and the way he so poignantly described his experiences before, during, and after Viet Nam. This book is thought provoking, funny, upsetting, and brutally honest. I could not put it down and recommend it to everyone. The comment about America becoming more materialistc and violent rings so true in today's politics. Thank you, Ben Sherman, for one of the best books I have ever read. R.Pence

"Medic!: The Story of a Conscientious Objector in the Vietnam War," by Ben Sherman, is an exciting, well-paced narrative that reads more like a novel than a memoir. The book tells how Sherman was drafted and was classified as a noncombatant soldier; he didn't carry a weapon, but still went into Vietnam and was exposed to danger in the combat zone. As a medic, he tended the wounds of his fellow soldiers. The early part of the narrative includes texts of the letters sent between Sherman and the draft board as he sought to evade combat service. The narrative goes on to explore his work on a navy troopship and on the ground in Vietnam. He vividly describes the sights, smells, and sounds of service in the war. The book is full of fascinating scenes, such as a political debate among the doctors and medics in a surgical theater. Sherman portrays the American soldiers in Vietnam as a diverse group: people with varying backgrounds, interests, and attitudes on various topics. Much of the book is very raw, sweaty, and in-your-face. But parts of the book are also graced with a touching, poetic delicacy. The final chapter includes insight on the writing of the book. Sherman's account of the ethics and the process of becoming a conscientious objector is truly remarkable. He dramatically portrays the dilemma faced by young American men during the Vietnam era. Overall, this is a well-written narrative that is, in my opinion, a valuable and distinctive addition to the canon of United States war literature.

I'm touched by how Ben Sherman can so well put words to his feelings, his fears, his shame, his intentions, his gifts, and his misgivings. I cried so much while reading Ben's vivid descriptions of the heart-felt humanity wedged between officious detachment and reckless bravado, that I weep still just glancing back at the book cover. Despite Ben's humble awakening to the realizations of how much he (we?) didn't know about the world off our college campuses, I honor his clear vocalization that he was a conscientious objector. Ben is four years my senior. I was blessed with an exceptionally high lottery number, which spared me immediately from the draft and for many years from the necessity to articulate the truth underlying my inner pacifism, despite my long-term outer activism. Truly, it takes courage each time anyone of us stands up and speaks truth to power, but my respect for Ben arises out of my witnessing how his truth withstood the forge of irrational violence and institutionalized fear-mongering. It seems to simply take time, sometimes years, for us to find the words which result in the verbalization of our truth. Ben's words, were truly worth the wait. Packed with unordinary, action-packed verbs, Ben's writing bespoke his English major background. I especially thank Ben for educating me on Vietnam-related details which are as important to our generation's legacy as the arrival of the Beatles and the assassination of JFK. It is my hope that as today's youth read Ben's book, they will find their own courage and voice early and loudly enough that CO status becomes transfigured from Conspicuous and Outrageous to Common and Ordinary.

This book was excellent. Ben Sherman has written his story in an honest and respectful way. He does not present himself as a paragon of virtue, but a 23-year-old man who does not want to go to war. Very few of those young men did, but Sherman went anyway and is honest about how much he wanted out of the situation. I loved the descriptions of his buddies and I felt the story was better for his having let us see the beginning, middle and end, rather than just his time in Vietnam. All in all an excellent book. I purchased this book for my 19-year-old son (who is worried about his own future at the hands of Mr. Bush) and ended up reading it before he did. Looking at my own son allowed me to relate better to the young man Mr. Sherman was so many years ago.

Like the best of stories, this one is intensely personal, and like the best of stories, this one is also universal. Ben Sherman exposes his intense experience as a conscientious objector serving as a frontline medic with a vivid sense of visual and visceral detail. The story is of one young man's brutal immersion into the reality of war, and it is also story of wide reaching significance of human connection and the stunning human cost of war across borders, cultures, and eras. Every Viet Nam vet has his or her own story; many are left untold, relegated to the bottomless black hole of suppressed war memories. No one could have faulted the author for choosing such a path; bringing memories of war horrors to light is painful. But Sherman offers his story as a gift of grace, an opportunity for healing, and as an imperative to seek other ways to resolve conflict. Paul Ferrini says, "When you have the courage to approach the wall of your fear, it turns into a doorway." Sherman has opened this doorway for himself, and his doorway offers an opening for others. Wars are fought by individuals, but are entered into and supported by our collective identity, by nations. If we are ever to learn a different way of resolving conflict, essential for the human story to continue, then we must have full understanding of the reality of war, not the propagandized unreality we're usually fed. Sherman's book tells a story we all, young and old, need to know. We especially need to know this story together, and "Medic!" provides a powerful vehicle for the most important of intergenerational conversations.This is not light reading; it is important reading about some of the deepest --both hardest and best -- of human experiences. I was drawn in, engaged, and changed by this book like no other. Sherman's unique perspective as a CO medic is a story we all need to hear.