The Bridge at Dong Ha (Bluejacket Books) - Softcover

Miller, Estate Of John G.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 155750587X ISBN 13: 9781557505873

Publisher: Naval Institute Press, 1996

Synopsis

This is the true story of the legendary Vietnam War hero John Ripley, who braved intense enemy fire to destroy a strategic bridge and stall a major North Vietnamese invasion into the South in April 1972. Told by a fellow Marine, the account lays bare Ripley's innermost thoughts as he rigged 500 pounds of explosives by hand-walking the beams beneath the bridge, crimped detonators with his teeth, and raced the burning fuses back to shore, thus saving his comrades from certain death.

First published in 1989, the book has broad appeal as a riveting tale of adventure. But John Miller has taken this daring act of heroism beyond the specifics of time and place to provide new insights into the nature of war and warriors, characteristics that have remained unchanged for centuries and will remain valid for generations to come. It has been on the Marine Corps Commandant's recommended reading list since 1990. Newly illustrated by Col. Charles Waterhouse, USMCR (Ret.).

About this title

About the Author:

John Miller, a retired Marine colonel, is the author of The Bridge at Dong Ha and The CoVans: U.S. Marine Advisors in Vietnam. Following his 1985 retirement from the Marine Corps, he became Managing Editor of Proceedings and Naval History, a post he held until 2000.

From AudioFile:

This exciting work tells the true story of Marine Captain John Ripley's destruction of a bridge during the North Vietnamese "Easter Offensive" of 1972. Ripley was an advisor to the South Vietnamese Marines, and this action (which he accomplished with the help of a U.S. Army tank advisor) stopped a huge communist armoured offensive and earned Ripley the Navy Cross. This work is written in a direct, but literate, style. Terence Aselford's reading fits very nicely with the thrilling text. His smooth baritone has an easygoing quality that sounds more like a storyteller's than a reader's. When reading the dialogues, Aselford adroitly and subtly brings out the differences in all the characters' personalities. The narrative is as ably told. Indeed, the listener will be as shocked by the explosion as Ripley was. This story of men doing the extraordinary can make for a well-spent evening. M.T.F. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 155750587X
• ISBN 13: 9781557505873
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 216