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C Trick
Before the all-volunteer Army, there was the draft. This meant that most young American men had to decide how they were going to meet their military obligation. As the Cold War dragged on and the Vietnam War heated up, how a person met this obligation assumed critical importance.
The choices were stark. If you were in college, you were safe. If not, you could wait to be drafted with the understanding that you could be sent to Vietnam as a combat soldier, or you could volunteer for an assignment that offered the chance of avoiding infantry combat in a rice paddy.
Volunteering, however, also had a price. You would serve for a longer time, often in a foreign country far away from friends and family.
"C Trick" tells the story of some of those who volunteered. The book is a tale that describes how one group of young citizen-soldiers met their military obligation during the last half of the Sixties.
The book describes what it was like to be a soldier in a special Army unit stationed in what may have been the most important Cold War hot spot. Using prose from the era, the book captures all the humor and frustration experienced by young men coping with the rigors of military life. The reader will experience the frustration of these men when they were expected to perform difficult technical work in an important national security facility while also dealing with military absurdities. This book captures all the details of how these soldiers worked, played and tried to avoid military life while serving in the Army.
It is a very refreshing account of how Cold War soldiers spent their time while their lives were on hold.
The choices were stark. If you were in college, you were safe. If not, you could wait to be drafted with the understanding that you could be sent to Vietnam as a combat soldier, or you could volunteer for an assignment that offered the chance of avoiding infantry combat in a rice paddy.
Volunteering, however, also had a price. You would serve for a longer time, often in a foreign country far away from friends and family.
"C Trick" tells the story of some of those who volunteered. The book is a tale that describes how one group of young citizen-soldiers met their military obligation during the last half of the Sixties.
The book describes what it was like to be a soldier in a special Army unit stationed in what may have been the most important Cold War hot spot. Using prose from the era, the book captures all the humor and frustration experienced by young men coping with the rigors of military life. The reader will experience the frustration of these men when they were expected to perform difficult technical work in an important national security facility while also dealing with military absurdities. This book captures all the details of how these soldiers worked, played and tried to avoid military life while serving in the Army.
It is a very refreshing account of how Cold War soldiers spent their time while their lives were on hold.
324 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 6, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 7, 2021
ASA All the Way!
Having spent my time in ASA, and in Europe during the Cold War, including time in Berlin, I related to everything Mr. Cooper wrote. His story brought back many good, and a few not so good, memories. It certainly was a unique time and place in history. My only need is the formatting. It leaves a lot to be desired for the Kindle.
Side Note: Our short timers were called "double-digit midgets" when we broke 100 days left. When we became "single-digit midgets" (less than 10 days), we were so short we had to stand on tip ties or a step ladder just to peer over the edge of a dime! The final day as a "wake-up and a bag drag" to the freedom bird.
Highly recommended everyone read this memoir to gain a better understanding of what it was like to serve our country during the Cold War and not in Viet Nam.
Having spent my time in ASA, and in Europe during the Cold War, including time in Berlin, I related to everything Mr. Cooper wrote. His story brought back many good, and a few not so good, memories. It certainly was a unique time and place in history. My only need is the formatting. It leaves a lot to be desired for the Kindle.
Side Note: Our short timers were called "double-digit midgets" when we broke 100 days left. When we became "single-digit midgets" (less than 10 days), we were so short we had to stand on tip ties or a step ladder just to peer over the edge of a dime! The final day as a "wake-up and a bag drag" to the freedom bird.
Highly recommended everyone read this memoir to gain a better understanding of what it was like to serve our country during the Cold War and not in Viet Nam.
February 1, 2022
Having served three tours of duty in West Berlin on the Hill as a Monterey Mary and having lived in the same barracks, I can relate to just about everything Mr Cooper wrote. It brought back some great memories. Although the names of the bars and restaurants changed after Mr Cooper departed they were still pretty much as he described them. All in all a good read, especially for anybody who served in West Berlin or in the ASA for that matter. I am also very proud to say that I wore the ASA patch on the right shoulder of my dress greens.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews