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Grey ghosts: New Zealand Vietnam vets talk about their war
'We were known to the enemy as "grey ghosts". We could be here, and we could be there.' - 'Sniper'
"We were known to the enemy as 'grey ghosts'. We could be here, and we could be there . . . " the Grey Ghosts were New Zealand's Vietnam veterans. their powerful story includes chilling accounts of death, injuries and emotional breakdown, along with the intense comradeship of soldiering, and a pervasive sense of humour that is uniquely our own. Acclaimed writer and historian Deborah Challinor interviewed 50 men who served in Vietnam, who speak out about 'fragging' (killing superior officers), the New Zealand Government's role in Agent Orange and chemical exposure, and their hostile reception when they returned. the result is compelling, reliving the Vietnam experience in vivid detail. First published in 1998, this updated edition includes new material on the subsequent handling of veterans' claims, and the reconciliation parade on Queen's Birthday weekend in 2008, when the men were finally welcomed home.
"We were known to the enemy as 'grey ghosts'. We could be here, and we could be there . . . " the Grey Ghosts were New Zealand's Vietnam veterans. their powerful story includes chilling accounts of death, injuries and emotional breakdown, along with the intense comradeship of soldiering, and a pervasive sense of humour that is uniquely our own. Acclaimed writer and historian Deborah Challinor interviewed 50 men who served in Vietnam, who speak out about 'fragging' (killing superior officers), the New Zealand Government's role in Agent Orange and chemical exposure, and their hostile reception when they returned. the result is compelling, reliving the Vietnam experience in vivid detail. First published in 1998, this updated edition includes new material on the subsequent handling of veterans' claims, and the reconciliation parade on Queen's Birthday weekend in 2008, when the men were finally welcomed home.
- GenresNonfictionWar
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
7 people are currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
Deborah Challinor
24 books250 followersBorn in Huntly, she holds a PhD in New Zealand history from the University of Waikato. Challinor has worked as a fulltime writer and historian since 2000.
Primarily known for her historical novels, Deborah Challinor’s first published books were non-fiction history books, including the best-selling Grey Ghosts: New Zealand Vietnam Vets Talk About Their War (Hodder Moa Beckett, 1998).
Her first historical novel, Tamar, was published in 2002 and has been reprinted six times. Tamar is set in Auckland, Hawke’s Bay and South Africa and covers the period from 1879 until the Boer War. The series continues with White Feathers (2003) and Blue Smoke (2004).
Union Belle (2005) tells the love story of a young woman caught up in the 1951 waterfront strike, and Kitty (2006) is set in the Bay of Islands in nineteenth century New Zealand. Both novels have been at the top of the New Zealand fiction bestseller list.
Attention to historical detail is an important part of writing for Challinor. ‘I base my novels on actual historical events, and it’s very important to me to research those events in depth and to present them accurately,’ she says.
Reviewing Union Belle in North and South magazine in April 2005, Warwick Roger commented that: ‘You can smell the beer and cigarette smoke in the public bar of the Huntly Hotel, hear the band at the Saturday night dances at the miner’s hall … it’s a book I kept sneaking back to whenever I had a spare quarter hour, eager to advance the story.’
Fire (HarperCollins, 2007), Challinor's seventh novel, is set in Auckland during the hype leading up to the royal visit of 1953, but is based on the Ballantyne’s department store fire of 1947 in Christchurch. A powerful and dramatic story of passion, ambition and greed, it became a number one bestseller.
Amber, the sequel to Kitty, was published later in 2007 and also became a bestseller. Amber opens in New Zealand in 1945, on the eve of the Northern War in the Bay of Islands, in which Kitty is caught up. Sent to Auckland away from the fighting, Kitty encounters an orphaned part-Maori girl she names Amber. Together they return to the Bay of Islands, where both Kitty must risk her own life to save Amber’s.
Isle of Tears (HarperCollins NZ Ltd, 2009) is a story about 14-year-old Scottish immigrant Isla McKinnon and her younger brothers and sister. When they are orphaned they are adopted by Taranaki Maori and become caught up in the wars in Taranaki, the Waikato and the Bay of Plenty.
A revised edition of Challinor’s Grey Ghosts (HarperCollins NZ) was published in 2009. This edition included a new chapter on how the New Zealand Vietnam veteran community has fared since the book was first published in 1998.
Primarily known for her historical novels, Deborah Challinor’s first published books were non-fiction history books, including the best-selling Grey Ghosts: New Zealand Vietnam Vets Talk About Their War (Hodder Moa Beckett, 1998).
Her first historical novel, Tamar, was published in 2002 and has been reprinted six times. Tamar is set in Auckland, Hawke’s Bay and South Africa and covers the period from 1879 until the Boer War. The series continues with White Feathers (2003) and Blue Smoke (2004).
Union Belle (2005) tells the love story of a young woman caught up in the 1951 waterfront strike, and Kitty (2006) is set in the Bay of Islands in nineteenth century New Zealand. Both novels have been at the top of the New Zealand fiction bestseller list.
Attention to historical detail is an important part of writing for Challinor. ‘I base my novels on actual historical events, and it’s very important to me to research those events in depth and to present them accurately,’ she says.
Reviewing Union Belle in North and South magazine in April 2005, Warwick Roger commented that: ‘You can smell the beer and cigarette smoke in the public bar of the Huntly Hotel, hear the band at the Saturday night dances at the miner’s hall … it’s a book I kept sneaking back to whenever I had a spare quarter hour, eager to advance the story.’
Fire (HarperCollins, 2007), Challinor's seventh novel, is set in Auckland during the hype leading up to the royal visit of 1953, but is based on the Ballantyne’s department store fire of 1947 in Christchurch. A powerful and dramatic story of passion, ambition and greed, it became a number one bestseller.
Amber, the sequel to Kitty, was published later in 2007 and also became a bestseller. Amber opens in New Zealand in 1945, on the eve of the Northern War in the Bay of Islands, in which Kitty is caught up. Sent to Auckland away from the fighting, Kitty encounters an orphaned part-Maori girl she names Amber. Together they return to the Bay of Islands, where both Kitty must risk her own life to save Amber’s.
Isle of Tears (HarperCollins NZ Ltd, 2009) is a story about 14-year-old Scottish immigrant Isla McKinnon and her younger brothers and sister. When they are orphaned they are adopted by Taranaki Maori and become caught up in the wars in Taranaki, the Waikato and the Bay of Plenty.
A revised edition of Challinor’s Grey Ghosts (HarperCollins NZ) was published in 2009. This edition included a new chapter on how the New Zealand Vietnam veteran community has fared since the book was first published in 1998.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 8, 2017
This book confirms all the worst fears I had in 1966 about what might go on should I, a reluctant National Serviceman who was quite unsuited to military life, be required to fight in Vietnam. I had already had serious misgivings about justifications for the war and up close as a soldier was quite appalled by the nature of the NZ Army. Challinor does a great job of presenting a range of views from her many interviews with veterans and follows them home and into the present. The treatment of returning servicemen by the Army and by politicians should be a source of national shame, regardless of anyone's view of the justness of the conflict. Very illuminating.
July 21, 2023
Insightful work from multiple lengthy interviews. Clearly showing the wide variety of experiences and opinions.
One of the rare books that talks of NZ and Vietnam.
Reading the E-book version with the 10 years later chapter, it was maddening to watch politicians continue to try and avoid admitting that these guys were impacted by defoliation.
One of the rare books that talks of NZ and Vietnam.
Reading the E-book version with the 10 years later chapter, it was maddening to watch politicians continue to try and avoid admitting that these guys were impacted by defoliation.
October 3, 2016
This is a really important book - as the author points out on a couple of occasions, the literature around New Zealand's participation in the Vietnam is pretty thin on the ground. So having this record of first hand experiences of the War is really valuable.
The basis of the book was a series of interviews with New Zealand Vietnam vets. Quotes from these interviews are organised thematically and to a certain extent chronologically, and are linked together by the author's summary and commentary. This approach is a strength in that the author is able to deal with a number of different aspects of the War in turn and collect a cross section of veterans' opinions on each aspect. However, at times this was also a weakness, as the quotes from the interviews are all quite short, so there is not the sense of going into depth with the subjects (although I'm sure the author did so in her interviews).
Having said that, this book covers a lot of ground and I appreciated the discussion of the reception that the vets received on their return to NZ - a good thing, as pages 180 to 243 of the edition I read were focused on this, including an epilogue written ten years after the first edition giving an update on the continued efforts of the vets to gain proper recognition and compensation from the government.
Overall this is well worth a read, although Appy's monumental Vietnam: an Oral History remains my all-time favourite oral and Vietnam history book.
The basis of the book was a series of interviews with New Zealand Vietnam vets. Quotes from these interviews are organised thematically and to a certain extent chronologically, and are linked together by the author's summary and commentary. This approach is a strength in that the author is able to deal with a number of different aspects of the War in turn and collect a cross section of veterans' opinions on each aspect. However, at times this was also a weakness, as the quotes from the interviews are all quite short, so there is not the sense of going into depth with the subjects (although I'm sure the author did so in her interviews).
Having said that, this book covers a lot of ground and I appreciated the discussion of the reception that the vets received on their return to NZ - a good thing, as pages 180 to 243 of the edition I read were focused on this, including an epilogue written ten years after the first edition giving an update on the continued efforts of the vets to gain proper recognition and compensation from the government.
Overall this is well worth a read, although Appy's monumental Vietnam: an Oral History remains my all-time favourite oral and Vietnam history book.
September 21, 2010
New Zealanders in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Well researched and gives an insight the politics of this war as well as anecdotal accounts on all aspects of the front line soldiers lives.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews