The Ensign Locker

by J.J. Zerr

In 1966, the destroyer USS Manfred is bound for Vietnam. For junior ensign Jon Zachery, life is simple. He wants the American dream for his wife and for himself, and the navy is just the first step along the way. After the ship enters the combat zone, however, Zachery lands in hot water with his superior officers. At the same time, he begins to have troubles with his wife. He finds himself in challenging combat situations with the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong, but he is most distressed when he discovers that one of his roommates is rabidly anti-war. Following two months in the combat zone, the ship gets a new commanding officer-and a new set of problems face Zachery and his shipmates. At first, his new commanding officer distrusts only the five ensigns in the ensign locker, but eventually he begins to distrust the entire wardroom. What happens next has a huge affect on the entire crew-ultimately resulting in the ship returning home to San Diego. Now Zachery must face the anti-war sentiments at home, and it may be the last straw for him.

436 pages, Paperback

First published September 23, 2010

About the author

John Zerr (J.J. Zerr) was born in St. Peters, Missouri, and graduated from Duchesne High School. In 1959, he began a thirty-six year career in the Navy, during which he completed two tours on destroyers. After joining the aviation community, he flew 330 combat missions over Vietnam. Across his Navy career, he accumulated 1017 carrier landings.

Following the service, he worked in the aerospace industry for eleven years. He began his third career with the publication of The Ensign Locker in September 2010. The story is set on a US Navy destroyer operating in the Tonkin Gulf in 1966. His second novel, Sundown Town Duty Station, was published in 2013.

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a work of fiction which is clearly stated at the beginning of the book, you know the stuff you read until you actually get to the story. Anyway, it reads like non-fiction to a point. The point is that you seldom have a new Ensign, the junior Officer in the wardroom suddenly tur from the worthless, leat knoledgeable member o the crew suddenly blossom into the trusted and favorite officer of the Commanding Officer, the Executive Officer and his Department Head in such a short time.

He gets the dangerous assignments that prove to illustrate his bravery and heroism and when a new CO takes over and "fires" everyone else in the wardroom, he suddenly becomes the trusted fair haired boy.

All in all, the story was exciting with one ot two dry moments, but those moments are a minor distraction only. It is enjoyable and well worth reading.