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Gone Native: An NCO's Story
On his first combat assignment, Cornett accompanied the Vietnamese Rangers on a search-and-destroy mission near Khe Sang. There he gained entree into a culture that he would ultimately respect greatly and admire deeply. Cornett's most challenging military duty began when he joined the Phoenix Program. As part of AK squad, he dressed in enemy uniform and roamed the deadly Central Highlands, capturing high-ranking VC officers in hot firefights and ambushes. It was there, deep in enemy territory, where the smallest mistake meant sudden death, that the Vietnamese fighting men earned his utmost respect.While offering rare glimpses of an aspect of the war most of the military and media never saw, Cornett tells the full, gut-wrenching story of his Vietnam. He also gives an unsparing view of himself - telling a no-holds-barred story of an American soldier who made sacrifices far beyond the call of duty . . . a soldier who, in defiance of the U.S. government, refused to turn his back on the Vietnamese.
- GenresWar
310 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 18, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 25, 2024
Mr. Cornett used his time wisely to connect to the people of Viet Nam.
He was a medic and along with keeping his buddies healthy, he set up a clinic for the surrounding villages. He enlisted the medics in other forward operating bases.
He knew how to speak Vietnamese and also learned the language of the mountain people.
The mountain people were treated as the underclass of humanity by the Vietnamese. He befriended them and soon was treated like a king for treating the ails of these people and treating with respect.
Mr. Cornett's views on the war were like so many young people who found themselves fighting for their lives for old men who wanted to pick a fight. Same old story.
In a small way, Mr. Cornett did more to win the hearts and minds of the people than all of the CIA people swarming throughout Vet Nam.
Interesting read.
He was a medic and along with keeping his buddies healthy, he set up a clinic for the surrounding villages. He enlisted the medics in other forward operating bases.
He knew how to speak Vietnamese and also learned the language of the mountain people.
The mountain people were treated as the underclass of humanity by the Vietnamese. He befriended them and soon was treated like a king for treating the ails of these people and treating with respect.
Mr. Cornett's views on the war were like so many young people who found themselves fighting for their lives for old men who wanted to pick a fight. Same old story.
In a small way, Mr. Cornett did more to win the hearts and minds of the people than all of the CIA people swarming throughout Vet Nam.
Interesting read.
February 7, 2020
Vietnam war veteran tells his story
The author has written a compelling book about his experiences and spares nothing. He is not perfect on any garrison level, but, in combat he was true to himself and his men. Like so many other warriors he hated selfish, self-seeking rear officer’s whose only purpose in life was to benefit themselves. This warrior is not perfect, but, like it or not he fought the enemy to the death at every possible encounter. He came home to abuse from hippie types and that was a disgrace for all of his sacrifices. I highly recommend this book.
The author has written a compelling book about his experiences and spares nothing. He is not perfect on any garrison level, but, in combat he was true to himself and his men. Like so many other warriors he hated selfish, self-seeking rear officer’s whose only purpose in life was to benefit themselves. This warrior is not perfect, but, like it or not he fought the enemy to the death at every possible encounter. He came home to abuse from hippie types and that was a disgrace for all of his sacrifices. I highly recommend this book.
February 7, 2017
Wow
Freaking guy is a little nuts. As an active duty 11B going on 15 years and 3 deployments, I envy this heros relationship with the Vietnamese. I did form tight bonds with my terps and some local kids but not on this level. Outstanding read by one of America's finest fighting men. I have read a lot of the books about the LRRPS but none like this.
Freaking guy is a little nuts. As an active duty 11B going on 15 years and 3 deployments, I envy this heros relationship with the Vietnamese. I did form tight bonds with my terps and some local kids but not on this level. Outstanding read by one of America's finest fighting men. I have read a lot of the books about the LRRPS but none like this.
April 29, 2021
I think I first heard about Alan G. Cornett in “Recondo” by Larry Chambers (another Vietnam perspective book). When I learned he had written his own book, I decided to check it out. I tried reading it a few years ago, but I wasn’t in the mood for a nonfiction at the time, and I only recently decided to give it another shot.
SUMMARY
The author describes his family background and decision to enlist in the Army during the Vietnam War. He trains with Special Forces (the "Green Berets") and proceeds to spend most of the next several years in combat zones. Trained as a medic, he also spends time as an instructor and performing long range patrols. He works alongside fellow American soldiers as well as indigenous forces; South Vietnamese soldiers and Montagnard guerillas.
Cornett doesn’t shy from describing his own failures, including initial inexperience, drug use, and near the ending of the book, an attempt to murder an officer. His story is amazing and it’s true, and he doesn’t try to paint himself as a war hero.
OVERALL: 3.2 out of 5
I was spoiled in that the first nonfiction military books I read were by Gary Linderer, who broke down his tour of duty in a near daily format, like a journal. For a book like this, by an author who spent years in Vietnam rather than one or two tours, you have to accept that you’re only getting the highlights. It’s solid material though, and I have the impression Cornett is just trying to say it like it is. Furthermore, because he is a “lifer”, who spent years in the Army even after the war ended, there is a sense that he still felt like a “new guy” even halfway through his second tour.
That humility while looking at his own younger days forms a strong part of the book; even while describing his own faults and sometimes lousy choices, there is a constant professionalism in the background of the writing. It is as though he is an Army man first, then a human being, and finally a soldier in a war.
The book has its faults, and doesn’t feel as polished as some of the other war perspectives I’ve read, but even that lack of polish has its own appeal.
RATINGS BY CATEGORY
CHARACTERS: 4 out of 5
Being a work of nonfiction, the question of characters is how well the author describes the people he encountered. Many people are unnamed or just appear once or twice in the narrative, but a few get special attention. Perhaps the most important is Phong, a Vietnamese fighter who later became Cornett’s brother-in-law. He describes these people in an almost encyclopedic way, giving the reader some history and current details, but the reader also gets to know them in the narrative.
Cornett himself is the real primary focus; he describes himself a few times, but the image created- a man who feels more comfortable in Vietnam than he does back home- is an interesting guy to read about (partly because he definitely does not fit most people's concept of a war junkie). He is just an all-American boy who didn't feel as secure in the United States as he felt on the job in Vietnam.
PACE: 3 out of 5
The pace is never too fast or too slow, though I do wonder if a few of the events might have been described out-of-order. I don’t remember Cornett explaining when he decided to stay for a second tour (or his motivations for doing so). In short, there’s probably too much story for what fits in a normal length novel. He focuses on the highlights and the things that he remembers the best, and it works, but a reader wonders what else happened in-between it all.
STORY: 4 out of 5
Cornett’s story is amazing, and the only problem is that things aren’t described in more detail. Most of the Vietnam books I’ve read are by people who only spent one or two tours in the war, so it’s something else to read about someone who kept going back over and over and over. I think he spends five or six tours, so when he says he felt more comfortable in Vietnam than in the United States, you know he’s telling the truth.
Some ambushes and battles are described in detail, but the real focus through all of it is Cornett himself; what his motivations are, what he plans for next, and what he’s thinking about. It’s great stuff, but again, almost told in an overview that doesn’t give a reader as much as they want. The final parts about his time in military prison are extremely short; maybe he did not want to dwell on those days too much, but a firsthand account of military justice would have been interesting to read.
DIALOGUE: 3 out of 5
There isn’t a lot of dialogue, and you can tell that Cornett is mostly trying to approximate what was said based on memory. It works, but the dialogue is never detailed enough that you can tell who is speaking by how it’s written or anything like that.
STYLE/TECHNICAL: 2 out of 5
The writing is clear, but there isn’t a lot to really hook a reader. Many parts are very repetitive (though again, very clear as a result), and the scenes can switch with no warning at all. One moment the author is describing Vietnamese drinking habits, and the next there is a big battle, and then things swing over to how he spent some leave time. My takeaway from this is that the guy is a soldier first and an author second, so while the writing may not be technically stellar, it’s still a great read.
SUMMARY
The author describes his family background and decision to enlist in the Army during the Vietnam War. He trains with Special Forces (the "Green Berets") and proceeds to spend most of the next several years in combat zones. Trained as a medic, he also spends time as an instructor and performing long range patrols. He works alongside fellow American soldiers as well as indigenous forces; South Vietnamese soldiers and Montagnard guerillas.
Cornett doesn’t shy from describing his own failures, including initial inexperience, drug use, and near the ending of the book, an attempt to murder an officer. His story is amazing and it’s true, and he doesn’t try to paint himself as a war hero.
OVERALL: 3.2 out of 5
I was spoiled in that the first nonfiction military books I read were by Gary Linderer, who broke down his tour of duty in a near daily format, like a journal. For a book like this, by an author who spent years in Vietnam rather than one or two tours, you have to accept that you’re only getting the highlights. It’s solid material though, and I have the impression Cornett is just trying to say it like it is. Furthermore, because he is a “lifer”, who spent years in the Army even after the war ended, there is a sense that he still felt like a “new guy” even halfway through his second tour.
That humility while looking at his own younger days forms a strong part of the book; even while describing his own faults and sometimes lousy choices, there is a constant professionalism in the background of the writing. It is as though he is an Army man first, then a human being, and finally a soldier in a war.
The book has its faults, and doesn’t feel as polished as some of the other war perspectives I’ve read, but even that lack of polish has its own appeal.
RATINGS BY CATEGORY
CHARACTERS: 4 out of 5
Being a work of nonfiction, the question of characters is how well the author describes the people he encountered. Many people are unnamed or just appear once or twice in the narrative, but a few get special attention. Perhaps the most important is Phong, a Vietnamese fighter who later became Cornett’s brother-in-law. He describes these people in an almost encyclopedic way, giving the reader some history and current details, but the reader also gets to know them in the narrative.
Cornett himself is the real primary focus; he describes himself a few times, but the image created- a man who feels more comfortable in Vietnam than he does back home- is an interesting guy to read about (partly because he definitely does not fit most people's concept of a war junkie). He is just an all-American boy who didn't feel as secure in the United States as he felt on the job in Vietnam.
PACE: 3 out of 5
The pace is never too fast or too slow, though I do wonder if a few of the events might have been described out-of-order. I don’t remember Cornett explaining when he decided to stay for a second tour (or his motivations for doing so). In short, there’s probably too much story for what fits in a normal length novel. He focuses on the highlights and the things that he remembers the best, and it works, but a reader wonders what else happened in-between it all.
STORY: 4 out of 5
Cornett’s story is amazing, and the only problem is that things aren’t described in more detail. Most of the Vietnam books I’ve read are by people who only spent one or two tours in the war, so it’s something else to read about someone who kept going back over and over and over. I think he spends five or six tours, so when he says he felt more comfortable in Vietnam than in the United States, you know he’s telling the truth.
Some ambushes and battles are described in detail, but the real focus through all of it is Cornett himself; what his motivations are, what he plans for next, and what he’s thinking about. It’s great stuff, but again, almost told in an overview that doesn’t give a reader as much as they want. The final parts about his time in military prison are extremely short; maybe he did not want to dwell on those days too much, but a firsthand account of military justice would have been interesting to read.
DIALOGUE: 3 out of 5
There isn’t a lot of dialogue, and you can tell that Cornett is mostly trying to approximate what was said based on memory. It works, but the dialogue is never detailed enough that you can tell who is speaking by how it’s written or anything like that.
STYLE/TECHNICAL: 2 out of 5
The writing is clear, but there isn’t a lot to really hook a reader. Many parts are very repetitive (though again, very clear as a result), and the scenes can switch with no warning at all. One moment the author is describing Vietnamese drinking habits, and the next there is a big battle, and then things swing over to how he spent some leave time. My takeaway from this is that the guy is a soldier first and an author second, so while the writing may not be technically stellar, it’s still a great read.
June 26, 2025
Very well written and an interesting account of the earlier years in Vietnam
March 28, 2017
,A Great True Story
Alan Corbett isn't, perhaps, a famous writer, but he should be. His story is one of adventure, heroics, and heartache. He overcame more challenges than any normal man would. His persistence and never give up attitude prevailed.
Alan Corbett isn't, perhaps, a famous writer, but he should be. His story is one of adventure, heroics, and heartache. He overcame more challenges than any normal man would. His persistence and never give up attitude prevailed.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews