Synopsis
The Vietnam War opens the door for countless volumes of personal memoirs from the fighting men who waged it. Most are well crafted by the men who never thought they would write a book, especially one about Vietnam. Absolution is an exceptional work of one man’s journey across those Asian battlefields in 1967 and 1968. Author Charles J. Boyle, takes you smack into the fighting from the first page of this authentic history and leaves you breathless all the way to the end. His descriptions of battle, how they were won or lost, and the men who fought them are spine chilling. Absolution is not just a story of the horror of war in Vietnam, but it is also one of love... love and admiration for the men who fought it. Thousands of young men, most of them teenagers, were thrust into the barbarity of that Asian civil war inadequately trained and initially armed with a defective weapon. In Vietnam, the foot soldier honed his “killing skills” by instinct and imagination. Out of Vietnam emerged a legion of men, struggling with an even greater battle, personal and private. They suffered a moral conflict that only those who have taken another life can comprehend. Then, undermining their gallant service in Vietnam, a powerful and biased news media created a myth that quickly spread across America. They said that the Vietnam-era soldier was a misfit; a perverse example of a military machine gone awry, wreaking havoc upon innocent civilians. Soon after the fighting was done in Vietnam, prominent news broadcasters coined a new phrase: “They only war we ever lost,” they said. They want you to believe that the soldier lost the war, when, in fact, he lost only his youth, his innocence and sadly, many of his friends. Absolution will take you through that aftermath, offer solutions for the Post Traumatic Stress that these soldiers suffered, and will prove to you that these Vietnam Veterans were some of the finest soldiers that ever served America. Absolution is a remarkable resurrection of the Vietnam battlefield, told by an author who has “been there.” It is an extraordinary and moving story, accurately portrayed, with all the valor, pain, and sacrifice that distinguished Vietnam from other wars. It is superb history and great reading. It will tear at your heart and make you want to cry.
About the Author
Charles J. Boyle grew up in rural Pennsylvania, entering the Army as a private in 1958. He rose swiftly through the ranks, earning a commission through Infantry Officers Candidate School in 1966. He received a B.A. in History from the University of Tampa in 1973 and retired from service as a Major in 1978.Assigned to Vietnam during 1967-68, he commanded a platoon in combat. At the outbreak of the 1968 Tet offensive, he was selected to command Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 22nd Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. Among his many awards are two Silver Stars for gallantry in action, two Bronze Stars for heroism, the Purple Heart, and numerous other awards for service. After retiring from the Army, Boyle spent the next 25 years teaching high school JROTC. He remains active with Vietnam Veteran groups and is frequently the featured speaker at reunions and other civic functions. Currently, he resides near Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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