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Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam
In January 1969, one of the most promising young lieutenant colonels the US Army had ever seen touched down in Vietnam for his second tour of duty, which would turn out to be his most daring and legendary.
David H. Hackworth had just completed the writing of a tactical handbook for the Pentagon, and now he had been ordered to put his counterguerilla-fighting theories into action. He was given the morale-drained 4/39th—a battalion of poorly led draftees suffering the Army's highest casualty rate and considered its worst fighting battalion. Hackworth's hard-nosed, inventive and inspired leadership quickly turned the 4/39th into Vietnam's valiant and ferocious Hardcore Recondos.
Drawing on interviews with soldiers from the Hardcore Battalion conducted over the past decade by his partner and coauthor, Eilhys England, Hackworth takes readers along on their sniper missions, ambush actions, helicopter strikes and inside the quagmire of command politics. With Steel My Soldiers' Hearts, Hackworth places the brotherhood of the 4/39th into the pantheon of our nation's most heroic warriors.
David H. Hackworth had just completed the writing of a tactical handbook for the Pentagon, and now he had been ordered to put his counterguerilla-fighting theories into action. He was given the morale-drained 4/39th—a battalion of poorly led draftees suffering the Army's highest casualty rate and considered its worst fighting battalion. Hackworth's hard-nosed, inventive and inspired leadership quickly turned the 4/39th into Vietnam's valiant and ferocious Hardcore Recondos.
Drawing on interviews with soldiers from the Hardcore Battalion conducted over the past decade by his partner and coauthor, Eilhys England, Hackworth takes readers along on their sniper missions, ambush actions, helicopter strikes and inside the quagmire of command politics. With Steel My Soldiers' Hearts, Hackworth places the brotherhood of the 4/39th into the pantheon of our nation's most heroic warriors.
464 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
39 people are currently reading
2262 people want to read
About the author
David H. Hackworth
10 books152 followersColonel David Haskell Hackworth, also known as "Hack", was a highly decorated soldier, having received 24 decorations for heroism in combat from the Distinguished Service Cross to the Army Commendation Medal. He was a prominent military journalist. During his time as a journalist, Hackworth investigated many subjects, including an assertion into the accused improper wearing of ribbons and devices by Admiral Mike Boorda, an investigation which is speculated to have driven Boorda to committing suicide.
Hackworth is also known for his role in the creation and command of Tiger Force, a military unit formed during the Vietnam War to apply guerrilla warfare tactics to the fight against Vietnamese guerrillas.
Hackworth is also known for his role in the creation and command of Tiger Force, a military unit formed during the Vietnam War to apply guerrilla warfare tactics to the fight against Vietnamese guerrillas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews
May 11, 2017
If you get me started on Vietnam you'll probably want me to stop before I'm through. What most Americans "think" they know about Nam they learned from Hollywood. Before I go on about the book let me say that the majority of troops were not spending most of their time high or smoking pot. Marijuana grew wild in the bush, it wasn't hard to come by. It also had (has)a distinctive smell that would bring all kinds of unwanted attention. Yes some did smoke, and other things and yes atrocities happen. Yes My Lai was real.
The problems in Nam went back mostly to the leadership. These things were also real. Rear Echelon Officers (REMFs...figure out the acronym) who sat on their butts while men died. Also read troops who managed to stay there in cushy billets. The war was fought by draftees who quickly learned that what they had to worry about was not winning the war but surviving and those who enlisted because they thought it was their duty. (there was also some friction between the two groups).
The brass were concerned about numbers, they kept close track of body count. In Washington President Kennedy's people came up with a formula. X bullets fired should produce Y number of enemy killed. President Johnson stayed with that.
You see we never set out to win a war. It is true that troops would die to take an objective and then headquarters would give it back only to order it taken again. The Vietcong would attack from cover and then fade into the population in general. A rice paddy full of black pajamas makes everyone look the same. Drop the AK47 and your gear and you look like everybody else.
It brought about a very personal war. The Cong would tell the population, "see the Yankees kill any of you" as they hid among the population. So you got hatred on both sides.
The Cong would attack from Cambodia then flee back across the border where American troops were forbidden to follow or even fire. No direct or indirect fire into Cambodia.
Don't ask the CIA about Cambodia, if they tell you they have to kill you.
So, now to this book. The Colonel is given command of an outfit which has a "poor" reputation. When he arrives he found it led as poorly as you could imagine. Morale is rock bottom and the discipline is so lax as to cause casualties. The camp was located "in" a mine field. The CP (Command Post) hunkered down in the center of the camp...beside a WW2 style ammo dump that could go up like the 4th of July with one RPG. There was artillery but no ammunition for it. The helicopter supposed to fly in the ammo instead had flown in the existing commander's white porta potty.
The book follows Hackworth as he turns the 39th into a lean outfit that became one of the best and toughest in the Delta.
Yes I recommend this book. I'd like you to go into it with open eyes and realize the most of the troops in Nam were good soldiers who fought to stay alive and to keep each other alive. The American troops won the battles but as cliched as it sounds they were never allowed or even meant to win the war.
I'm glad to see that now almost 40 years after they were pulled out they are finally getting a little of the respect they are due.
The problems in Nam went back mostly to the leadership. These things were also real. Rear Echelon Officers (REMFs...figure out the acronym) who sat on their butts while men died. Also read troops who managed to stay there in cushy billets. The war was fought by draftees who quickly learned that what they had to worry about was not winning the war but surviving and those who enlisted because they thought it was their duty. (there was also some friction between the two groups).
The brass were concerned about numbers, they kept close track of body count. In Washington President Kennedy's people came up with a formula. X bullets fired should produce Y number of enemy killed. President Johnson stayed with that.
You see we never set out to win a war. It is true that troops would die to take an objective and then headquarters would give it back only to order it taken again. The Vietcong would attack from cover and then fade into the population in general. A rice paddy full of black pajamas makes everyone look the same. Drop the AK47 and your gear and you look like everybody else.
It brought about a very personal war. The Cong would tell the population, "see the Yankees kill any of you" as they hid among the population. So you got hatred on both sides.
The Cong would attack from Cambodia then flee back across the border where American troops were forbidden to follow or even fire. No direct or indirect fire into Cambodia.
Don't ask the CIA about Cambodia, if they tell you they have to kill you.
So, now to this book. The Colonel is given command of an outfit which has a "poor" reputation. When he arrives he found it led as poorly as you could imagine. Morale is rock bottom and the discipline is so lax as to cause casualties. The camp was located "in" a mine field. The CP (Command Post) hunkered down in the center of the camp...beside a WW2 style ammo dump that could go up like the 4th of July with one RPG. There was artillery but no ammunition for it. The helicopter supposed to fly in the ammo instead had flown in the existing commander's white porta potty.
The book follows Hackworth as he turns the 39th into a lean outfit that became one of the best and toughest in the Delta.
Yes I recommend this book. I'd like you to go into it with open eyes and realize the most of the troops in Nam were good soldiers who fought to stay alive and to keep each other alive. The American troops won the battles but as cliched as it sounds they were never allowed or even meant to win the war.
I'm glad to see that now almost 40 years after they were pulled out they are finally getting a little of the respect they are due.
July 13, 2013
Hackworth's story is one of leadership, about how to take a losing unit and turn them into winners through energy, training, and discipline. Inheriting a broken and despirited battalion, Hackworth went from a CO with a bounty on his head to commander of a crack team of killers. The lessons in this book are about esprit de corp, warfare, and how an organization rots from the top are universal.
Unlike most of these war memoirs, Steel My Soldiers' Hearts has an antagonist, the careerist and incompetent Colonel (later Major General) Ira Hunt, who interfered constantly in Hackworth's plans to the detriment of the ordinary soldiers in the battalion. The VC are a respected and crafty foe, but Hackworth has no time for the slow work of counter-insurgency. He's a master of light infantry tactics, and stealthy and brutal ambushes and patrols. For a layperson, this is a good intro to the chaos of airmobile operations.
As a writer, Hackworthy is a pulpy as a freshly squeezed glass of politically incorrect orange juice. The book is far from a neutral account, but it's his story and he tells it with verve and gusto.
New crazy Vietnam War moment: A helicopter taking out an AA gun in hand-to-hand combat. Just lean out and karate chop it down.
Unlike most of these war memoirs, Steel My Soldiers' Hearts has an antagonist, the careerist and incompetent Colonel (later Major General) Ira Hunt, who interfered constantly in Hackworth's plans to the detriment of the ordinary soldiers in the battalion. The VC are a respected and crafty foe, but Hackworth has no time for the slow work of counter-insurgency. He's a master of light infantry tactics, and stealthy and brutal ambushes and patrols. For a layperson, this is a good intro to the chaos of airmobile operations.
As a writer, Hackworthy is a pulpy as a freshly squeezed glass of politically incorrect orange juice. The book is far from a neutral account, but it's his story and he tells it with verve and gusto.
New crazy Vietnam War moment: A helicopter taking out an AA gun in hand-to-hand combat. Just lean out and karate chop it down.
December 8, 2019
David Hackworth, a very highly decorated U.S. Army veteran of Korea and Vietnam wrote this about his time leading an infantry battalion in the 9th Infantry division. Action is mainly in the Mekong Delta in 1969. There are numerous actions described but hard to follow with no tactical maps (just front and end piece maps of the general area). Perhaps that was a conscious decision as Vietnam was rarely about specific terrain. If you have not read anything about Vietnam this is a good microcosm of the worst and best of that mess. Seems like such ancient history but those young warriors are honored here (except for most of the 'brass' which he brilliantly excoriates!). I read his memoir 'About Face' years ago. That book and this one should probably be required reading in infantry schools but I doubt they are. But at the very least the afterword, which distills his thoughts rather succinctly. Notable that he carried a copy of Sun-Tzu with him all the time having first read it in Korea after the Chinese entry.
January 7, 2026
The best book on leadership I've ever read. This book is fantastic, I cannot recommend it enough.
September 13, 2025
Very much this book contains what you would expect of the opinions of a Vietnam war colonel. But alongside it is quite the compelling story of leadership and human connection. Can't say I would necessarily recommend it but I was fascinated by it
March 27, 2016
I don't think this is the 'best' book on the Vietnam war I have read but it is certainly interesting.
Colonel Hackworth is a good writer and managed to make even boring details interesting. His description of battles is very good also - despite in some situations having numerous troops in a number of locations the descriptions of the battles were straight forward and relatively easy to understand.
The Colonel certainly has a chip on his shoulder, so if you're looking for a non-biased view this might not be it. That said his techniques in training the Hardcore are certainly interesting and I can see why he believes that many could learn from what he did in Vietnam - his epilogue and afterword regarding more recent wars gives you his thoughts on this matter.
Although the focus of this book is on the 'grunts' and the great heroics and achievements that they do, their is always an undertone of ... not stupidity but stubbornness or blindness, or perhaps even short-mindedness of those in power in the army. I'm in the process of reading a book on the Boer War and the mistakes made by the British there seem to be repeated here (and as Hackworth says were also repeated in the Somme and numerous other wars). It is interesting to see such similar elements repeated in so many different wars and times but at the same time you do wish it weren't the case.
Although this isn't the first book that I would recommend about this war I certainly enjoyed reading it.
Colonel Hackworth is a good writer and managed to make even boring details interesting. His description of battles is very good also - despite in some situations having numerous troops in a number of locations the descriptions of the battles were straight forward and relatively easy to understand.
The Colonel certainly has a chip on his shoulder, so if you're looking for a non-biased view this might not be it. That said his techniques in training the Hardcore are certainly interesting and I can see why he believes that many could learn from what he did in Vietnam - his epilogue and afterword regarding more recent wars gives you his thoughts on this matter.
Although the focus of this book is on the 'grunts' and the great heroics and achievements that they do, their is always an undertone of ... not stupidity but stubbornness or blindness, or perhaps even short-mindedness of those in power in the army. I'm in the process of reading a book on the Boer War and the mistakes made by the British there seem to be repeated here (and as Hackworth says were also repeated in the Somme and numerous other wars). It is interesting to see such similar elements repeated in so many different wars and times but at the same time you do wish it weren't the case.
Although this isn't the first book that I would recommend about this war I certainly enjoyed reading it.
December 14, 2025
Абсолютная противоположность Маттерхорну. Тем более - вещам что они несли с собой. Повесть "из безнадёги к крутизне: как крепить солдатские сердца на примере батальона 4/39 во Вьетнаме" от них отличается примерно так же, как Ремарк от Юнгера.
Тут минимум изящной словесности, текст местами читается тяжело, особенно для слабо знакомого со специфическим американским военным жаргончиком, но тут собраны настолько вкусные примеры тактических задач, так ёмко выкристаллизованы вневременные основы требований к молодому офицеру и военному вообще, что местами только ухаешь и пот со лба вытираешь.
Примечательно, что бравый комбат хардкор-шесть, помимо собственных приключений обильно нафаршировал повествование прямой речью собранных по всей Америке интервью своих подчинённых, лётчиков, врачей и прочих действующих лиц - видно, как отличается один и тот же эпизод с разных точек зрения, и почему картинка складывается только если собрать всё вместе и крепко подумать.
Ещё более примечательно, что в такой книге нашлось место и для личного взгляда полковника на ту войну, и на то, каким должно быть отношение к такому бескомпромиссному и жестокому врагу, и удивительно зрячий взгляд на причины неудач американского спецназа в Сомали и начале афганской войны, и мрачное пророчество о том, куда дует ветер в ещё только начинавшейся на момент написания книги т.н. "войне с террором". Как в воду глядел.
Гляньте и вы.
Тут минимум изящной словесности, текст местами читается тяжело, особенно для слабо знакомого со специфическим американским военным жаргончиком, но тут собраны настолько вкусные примеры тактических задач, так ёмко выкристаллизованы вневременные основы требований к молодому офицеру и военному вообще, что местами только ухаешь и пот со лба вытираешь.
Примечательно, что бравый комбат хардкор-шесть, помимо собственных приключений обильно нафаршировал повествование прямой речью собранных по всей Америке интервью своих подчинённых, лётчиков, врачей и прочих действующих лиц - видно, как отличается один и тот же эпизод с разных точек зрения, и почему картинка складывается только если собрать всё вместе и крепко подумать.
Ещё более примечательно, что в такой книге нашлось место и для личного взгляда полковника на ту войну, и на то, каким должно быть отношение к такому бескомпромиссному и жестокому врагу, и удивительно зрячий взгляд на причины неудач американского спецназа в Сомали и начале афганской войны, и мрачное пророчество о том, куда дует ветер в ещё только начинавшейся на момент написания книги т.н. "войне с террором". Как в воду глядел.
Гляньте и вы.
April 3, 2018
Col. Hackworth describes how he takes a rag-tag unit of ill-disciplined soldiers and turns them into an aggressive and extremely competent fighting force. I would highly recommend this book to anybody in a leadership position in the military. I would recommend reading "About Face" prior to this book. As people who read this without having read About Face may think "Hack" is arrogant, when in fact he is a very humble man, and his exceptional competence as a leader can be construed as arrogance that does not have the context of the man, given in About Face (AF). In AF he tells the reader of his triumphs and tribulations, it's not all flowers and sunshine, sometimes he got beat and made mistakes, and he admits to and learns from them. With AF as a solid foundation one can truly appreciate Steel My Soldiers Hearts. On a side note, don't be dissuaded by AF, it is lengthy but an entertaining, informative and educational read. One of my favorite books.
September 27, 2019
This book is precious and needs to be read by every military leader from the top to the bottom. It features LTC Hackworth turning the 4-39 “Hardcore Battalion” from getting their butts kicked by insurgents to an effective counterinsurgency fighting force. LTC Hackworth highlights his struggles with upper echelon leaders and their obsession with World War 2 tactics. Even after the Hardcore begins to crush the enemy, the upper echelon leaders only care about body count that make themselves look good. This is a brutally honest take on the Vietnam conflict. One of my favorite books to this day. It takes a lot to stand up for what is right and that is what COL Hackworth did.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 28, 2020
A great book from a great leader respected by his superiors, loved by his grunts and a nuisance to incompetent people in the chain of comment. The story is very uplifting with great takeaways for especially for leaders military or civilian.
August 8, 2025
3+
Packs a punch, and lands several, alongside hacky prose a hackneyed bravado of character.
I had to laugh as the the terrible, macho-intense metaphors piled up (blacker than a serial killer's soul; exposed as the balls on a billiard table; surely as a topless dancer knows her body {what? lol}; like a chastity belt on a medieval maiden). I had to temper some winces to overt and baked-in racism/etc -- I was well prepared for and overall accepted-as, in part because I could tell it was written "bluntly" on purpose, but still -- that Hackworth would surely roll his own eyes about.
And I do mean character, and one Hackworth takes pains to inhabit and convey. I both get it an am annoyed by it, because him-as-just-Hack seems more than sufficient, but we're doing a bit here and he and his coauthor are committed to it. And those metaphors--I can't believe Hackworth speaks like that with regularity in real life, and if he does, that'd get hard to take.
But, the man certainly both knows and understand soldiering and leadership of-a-sort. When he isn't busy humblebragging about his many best qualities, what he has to say is valuable, and particularly so about an event like Vietnam that now has two prevailing narratives, with neither being quite a useful truth about it.
He is generous with esteem and giving propers to select soldiers and then to aspects of the Viet Cong. But it'll always come back to him being the smartest guy in the room, and often the least appreciated for it, and we should thank him for it. At times you want to nudge and tell him hey save a smidgen of glory for someone, anyone, else. At other times you nod kind of helplessly that yeah, this is one of the types of guys you want in the thick of it when the thick gets hot.
I don't find war thrilling or glorious, and I'm not a The Troops person. But I understand we still live in a time of war, and it will be waged, and the more reasonably ready for that--including breaking through/to the smug ranks of brass and executive and congress who never have to face consequences of their decisions--is a grim necessity. Some of Hackworth's hard-won expertise would do well in a binder explicating how.
Some of the chapters felt like filler, and almost for more of that "bluntness," maybe shock value. Very little of the book was about him transforming a battalion and far more about his own actions, annoyances, challenges, and interactions. We just didn't get into it. I didn't expect a movie montage of a ragtag group of pitiful grunts turned into lean and mean fighting machines, but we got one and a half chapters of "I took away their creature comforts and then threw them into the fray!" as his ~work transforming them, and then recountings of their maneuvers, skirmishes, and battles.
Those recountings were cogent and interesting, but a lot of the promised meat of the book was carved out.
I found the epilogue unnecessary, although I understand when it was written how much closer his view was to both Viet Nam and how insurgency would affect fast-coming conflicts than where we stand now.
Which, two things in the epilogue:
-- In-country he lays down the old canard that there's no racism in the military because every guy needs the guy next to him, regardless who they are. While acknowledging okay there is a lot of racism it just can't be overt or overtly said, trust. Then in the epilogue he can't resist popping off about how the military has gotten TOO PC, when the most the military was doing was tepidly messaging that old canard he once polished to a shine... so, okay brother.
-- In-country he well states the main reason the US couldn't beat the Viet Cong--and why the VC was such a formidable enemy--was transcendent to tactics and warfare and how technologically superior the US was. It's the intangibles of *why* they fought so hard (I agree!). Then in the epilogue he says without irony the best way to prevent terrorism and bleeding-out wars provoked by said was to be as hardened and technologically superior and ready as possible so NO ONE would dare provoke or attack us... so, okay brother.
It really is so much about perspective.
Packs a punch, and lands several, alongside hacky prose a hackneyed bravado of character.
I had to laugh as the the terrible, macho-intense metaphors piled up (blacker than a serial killer's soul; exposed as the balls on a billiard table; surely as a topless dancer knows her body {what? lol}; like a chastity belt on a medieval maiden). I had to temper some winces to overt and baked-in racism/etc -- I was well prepared for and overall accepted-as, in part because I could tell it was written "bluntly" on purpose, but still -- that Hackworth would surely roll his own eyes about.
And I do mean character, and one Hackworth takes pains to inhabit and convey. I both get it an am annoyed by it, because him-as-just-Hack seems more than sufficient, but we're doing a bit here and he and his coauthor are committed to it. And those metaphors--I can't believe Hackworth speaks like that with regularity in real life, and if he does, that'd get hard to take.
But, the man certainly both knows and understand soldiering and leadership of-a-sort. When he isn't busy humblebragging about his many best qualities, what he has to say is valuable, and particularly so about an event like Vietnam that now has two prevailing narratives, with neither being quite a useful truth about it.
He is generous with esteem and giving propers to select soldiers and then to aspects of the Viet Cong. But it'll always come back to him being the smartest guy in the room, and often the least appreciated for it, and we should thank him for it. At times you want to nudge and tell him hey save a smidgen of glory for someone, anyone, else. At other times you nod kind of helplessly that yeah, this is one of the types of guys you want in the thick of it when the thick gets hot.
I don't find war thrilling or glorious, and I'm not a The Troops person. But I understand we still live in a time of war, and it will be waged, and the more reasonably ready for that--including breaking through/to the smug ranks of brass and executive and congress who never have to face consequences of their decisions--is a grim necessity. Some of Hackworth's hard-won expertise would do well in a binder explicating how.
Some of the chapters felt like filler, and almost for more of that "bluntness," maybe shock value. Very little of the book was about him transforming a battalion and far more about his own actions, annoyances, challenges, and interactions. We just didn't get into it. I didn't expect a movie montage of a ragtag group of pitiful grunts turned into lean and mean fighting machines, but we got one and a half chapters of "I took away their creature comforts and then threw them into the fray!" as his ~work transforming them, and then recountings of their maneuvers, skirmishes, and battles.
Those recountings were cogent and interesting, but a lot of the promised meat of the book was carved out.
I found the epilogue unnecessary, although I understand when it was written how much closer his view was to both Viet Nam and how insurgency would affect fast-coming conflicts than where we stand now.
Which, two things in the epilogue:
-- In-country he lays down the old canard that there's no racism in the military because every guy needs the guy next to him, regardless who they are. While acknowledging okay there is a lot of racism it just can't be overt or overtly said, trust. Then in the epilogue he can't resist popping off about how the military has gotten TOO PC, when the most the military was doing was tepidly messaging that old canard he once polished to a shine... so, okay brother.
-- In-country he well states the main reason the US couldn't beat the Viet Cong--and why the VC was such a formidable enemy--was transcendent to tactics and warfare and how technologically superior the US was. It's the intangibles of *why* they fought so hard (I agree!). Then in the epilogue he says without irony the best way to prevent terrorism and bleeding-out wars provoked by said was to be as hardened and technologically superior and ready as possible so NO ONE would dare provoke or attack us... so, okay brother.
It really is so much about perspective.
May 1, 2023
Many years ago I read Colonel Hackworth's Vietnam autobiography entitled About Face in which he carefully laid out all of the terrible decisions that led to America's defeat in the Vietnam war. At the time it was rather controversial because he spared no punches in laying out the gross failures of leadership from General Westmoreland on down. Unfortunately, everything he stated was true. Even more so is that truth evident in the myriad stupid conflicts we have enmeshed ourselves in to promote the military industrial complex since Vietnam. So I was looking forward to this book which accurately details the way a guerrilla insurgency like the VietCong fought could be countered and effectively neutralized with the right tactics and firepower. Hackworth did just that taking the Hardcore Recondo's from frustrated citizen soldiers to a bad ass outfit. By leaning on senior non-commissioned officers who had combat time in the bush and bad ass company commanders Hackworth took the fight to the V.C. and punched them in the mouth and stomped their asses into ground flat. Unfortunately when he received his eighth purple heart (yeah this is one bad mother fucker 8 purple hearts) that was too much for the brass and they pulled him out of the active combat zone thus ending one of the most effective combat leaders in Vietnam. I found this book to be an excellent counter point to About Face and a further testament to a true warrior and just how badly we threw away American lives in a senseless war.
November 15, 2023
Having studied Col Hackworth from the Vietnam War firsthand accounts, Roger Hilsman (from JFKs cabinet), HR McMasters “Dereliction of Duty” and Lt Col Scott Mann’s “Game Changers” book… and having been to my fair share of schools in the army
Hackworth, Hilsman and McMaster highlighted over and over how Vietnam was never a conventional war… it was a counter-guerilla conflict. Much like Afghanistan and post invasion Iraq
And both in Vietnam…. And in GWOT, our nations generals screwed the pooch. Thinking they were gonna win those “wars” like taking Rome, Berlin, or Tokyo. A point I’m expounding on made by Hackworth in this book.
You don’t win a counter guerrilla conflict by seizing ground and body counts.
It’s vastly more like policing except the stakes are 1,000x higher
1) Push out the bad players, isolate and fix them and punish them… (punish via capture/kill)
So that
2) The civilians caught in the internal conflict can begin sustaining themselves and their own economy
Once # 2 is set in motion and sustained for a good bit of time far fewer are gonna want to join an extremist group
There was a saying by some of the people within JFKs Cabinet about an “oil blot” principle in Vietnam. Basically slowly and with precision provide security for stability …. Eat an elephant one bite at a time type principle.
Generals wanted their Berlin moments and viewed it all strictly as a military action/war. This attitude and mindset royally screwed our operation in Vietnam and in Afghanistan.
Hackworth, Hilsman and McMaster highlighted over and over how Vietnam was never a conventional war… it was a counter-guerilla conflict. Much like Afghanistan and post invasion Iraq
And both in Vietnam…. And in GWOT, our nations generals screwed the pooch. Thinking they were gonna win those “wars” like taking Rome, Berlin, or Tokyo. A point I’m expounding on made by Hackworth in this book.
You don’t win a counter guerrilla conflict by seizing ground and body counts.
It’s vastly more like policing except the stakes are 1,000x higher
1) Push out the bad players, isolate and fix them and punish them… (punish via capture/kill)
So that
2) The civilians caught in the internal conflict can begin sustaining themselves and their own economy
Once # 2 is set in motion and sustained for a good bit of time far fewer are gonna want to join an extremist group
There was a saying by some of the people within JFKs Cabinet about an “oil blot” principle in Vietnam. Basically slowly and with precision provide security for stability …. Eat an elephant one bite at a time type principle.
Generals wanted their Berlin moments and viewed it all strictly as a military action/war. This attitude and mindset royally screwed our operation in Vietnam and in Afghanistan.
June 29, 2018
One of the best books on military leadership that I have read.
Most military leadership books come off too much like an after action report, or are too seeped in memoirs that its a personal diary, but this find a good medium.
It provides excellent lessons on how to lead. It provides entertaining stories. Thats really all you can look for in this genre.
I can't give it a perfect score because he comes off too arrogant. Sure, he think's these other characters are X and Y and Z, but does everyone else? He hands out a LOT of criticism but mentions almost none made about him except for comments that give him positive attributes.
I read this book because of the Jocko podcast, and like the podcast, I would select the same parts to read or listen to if you are short on time- first 10 chapters or so and then the epilogue. the latter part is not as elucidating as the first part of the book when he assumes the leadership role.
Most military leadership books come off too much like an after action report, or are too seeped in memoirs that its a personal diary, but this find a good medium.
It provides excellent lessons on how to lead. It provides entertaining stories. Thats really all you can look for in this genre.
I can't give it a perfect score because he comes off too arrogant. Sure, he think's these other characters are X and Y and Z, but does everyone else? He hands out a LOT of criticism but mentions almost none made about him except for comments that give him positive attributes.
I read this book because of the Jocko podcast, and like the podcast, I would select the same parts to read or listen to if you are short on time- first 10 chapters or so and then the epilogue. the latter part is not as elucidating as the first part of the book when he assumes the leadership role.
February 18, 2018
Interesting but disturbing book about the Army in Vietnam, which can equally be applied to armed forces activities today. As they say, what a cluster@#&%! And we are now planning on spending even more of our tax dollars to support the bloated and inept military. I also am increasingly against the "volunteer" army-- if everyone had children or relatives at risk, and everyone could see how ridiculously the military is run, there would be much less opportunity for continuing the farce. And how easily the rest of us will sacrifice the (relatively faceless) few who are willing to shoulder the burden, starting with our cowardly Commander Bone Spur. This book should be required reading for everyone in Congress and the White House.
Want to read
February 18, 2025Hi just would like to hollar out at y'all and say that I am Danielle Kingsley and Daniel Lester was part of this platoon and squad with Sugar bear, the man that lead everyone in the fight during the most conflict. I have yet to read the book, but Daniel Lester is my Uncle. My Uncle Danny. I was named after him by his sister, my mother, Donna Lester. Danny was enlisted in the draft and served his 2 year enlistment. He was wounded in the war conflict over in Vietnam and it took 23 years for him to finally receive the 2 purple hearts he earned and deserved. Anyone know who I am referring to if so say something. I'd love to hear anything anyone has to offer in reference to the same discussion about him or anyone he served with in the Vietnam war. Thanks for taking time to read my comment.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 30, 2019
An easy read albeit small type face. I hope this becomes a timeless classic as what Hackworth writes about isn’t just analogous to war and soldiering but also to life.
As I read through the book I couldn’t help but reflect on so many great insights into human nature and how things really work (or don’t).
I came away with a new appreciation of the brutality of war, reinforcement of my views on leadership and a sense that even Hackworth knew he was flawed yet lived by a personal code that he believes saved many lives in Vietnam.
As I read through the book I couldn’t help but reflect on so many great insights into human nature and how things really work (or don’t).
I came away with a new appreciation of the brutality of war, reinforcement of my views on leadership and a sense that even Hackworth knew he was flawed yet lived by a personal code that he believes saved many lives in Vietnam.
November 29, 2025
This is a valuable and novel insight into how Vietnam was fought, the tactics that worked, and the poor leadership that ultimately led to the loss of the war. The wide range of interviews conducted make the work better, though the writing at times can become repetitive.
It’s hard to read about so much suffering — on the part of young and courageous American soldiers and on the part of millions of Vietnamese civilians who found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time — for a war that Hackworth ultimately viewed as both misguided and destined to be lost.
It’s hard to read about so much suffering — on the part of young and courageous American soldiers and on the part of millions of Vietnamese civilians who found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time — for a war that Hackworth ultimately viewed as both misguided and destined to be lost.
June 5, 2025
A well written account of four months in Vietnam by one who was pivotal to the operations both directly and as overseer. Written in the parlance of the people who were there it is easy to understand and immerses one in the battle as if one was there in person. Another facet of a war that was much maligned in its latter stages with truths conveniently bent or buried by the higher echelons. Worth reading!
November 30, 2017
This is my favorite book about Vietnam. It's told from David Hackworth's personal experiences and gives you a great idea of the vocabulary, mindsets, and so on of the soldiers. Hackworth is highly critical of the military leadership during the Vietnam War and their inflated body counts.
I recommend this to everyone I know that has any interest in military history.
I recommend this to everyone I know that has any interest in military history.
August 15, 2023
Overall, a very engaging read. I wish that the writing was a little less all over the place, I found it was difficult to follow at many times and I couldn't tell who was who and what was what. I also don't like the way that it glorifies war, and I wish that it exposed the uglier side of war in a more brutal manner. Still, good.
December 3, 2024
Very raw, powerful, and inspiring. The book deals with tragedy in a respectful, commemorating manner. The writing draws you in like any old thriller novel. The moral that colonel Hackworth presents is thought provoking and worth the read in itself. I would recommend for anyone interested in history, the army, or bettering their worldview.
October 5, 2018
Should be required reading for every war college and anywhere else leaders are trained. The epilogue especially drives home the lessons learned, and partially forgotten, and the relevance in today’s world.
January 26, 2019
Incredible book that showcases the power of leadership and the awesome story of taking ownership of a team and leading them to great success. I believe this should be required reading for everyone, but especially for folks that are interested in being a better leader or even a better follower.
October 16, 2021
Solid read with a first hand account of what it takes to be a successful leader of men in combat. Also gives perspective to just why the US Military lost in Vietnam and how those same mistakes carry on today in modern conflict.
February 16, 2025
This is a great first-hand account of what it was like, on the ground, in the quagmire that was the Vietnam War. My only recommendation would be to read About Face before this book so you can better understand its author and his thinking.
June 7, 2017
Danny had me read this.
March 9, 2018
good
August 26, 2018
Great account on how Vietnam should have been fought, many issues of US army and some leadership lessons.
October 26, 2018
An amazing book about leadership and a MUST READ for anyone looking to be an infantry officer.
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