I Was Fighting For Peace, but, Lord, There Was Much More [SIGNED FIRST EDITION]

Johnson, Gary Paul

Published by Exposition Press, Hicksville, New York, 1979

About this Item

Fine condition green cloth boards with gold front cover and spine lettering contained in a very good condition non price-clipped illustrated dust jacket. Includes Preface. The jacket has some light scattered small chips and dampstain at the upper rear jacket edge. All pages are in fine unmarked condition and the spine is exceedingly tight and square. (see photographs). Signed and inscribed by the author with blue pen on the verso of the half title page. "In the war-torn country of Vietnam the enemy moves at night. Down the trails he moves - to be trapped in a firefight. That was the experience of G.P. Johnson as he crouched in the jungles of Vietnam, watching for the enemy in a war he had to fight and was trying so hard to understand. In this collection of deeply moving poems written during his combat duty and after, Mr. Johnson expresses the divided feelings of the men who fought in that strange, "unpopular" war. Like so many veterans of Vietnam, G.P. Johnson was aware of the dilemmas of that horrible conflict. His poems express his search for a meaning - a cause to fight for - while he remains grimly aware of the eternal horror of war. "I killed a man today - it made me face reality. My only consolation is -- that it was either him or me. I know that I shot first, because I saw him hit the ground. Then everything seemed so still, except for a thumping sound." " "This war in Vietnam has placed its mark on me. Though I don't believe in war -- I believe in my country! That belief, that conviction that he is fighting in a just cause, for peace and freedom, sustains the soldier during the agonies of battle -- that, and memories and hopes for the future. There will be no more sleepless nights or fear of those terrible firefights! I'll go on to college and play sports once more; When I look to the stands it'll be you I'm looking for. The war ends, and the soldier comes home, but the new world he had hoped to find is not at all what he expected. He wonders if he has fought in vain. Power, Politics, and Profit! What a reason to die! Now that I know the truth, it's difficult not to cry. Once again he must fight a war -- this time within himself - in a search for meaning, for love, for God - for a world that will provide an answer to an age-old question: How many times must man go to war? When will he say that he won't fight anymore?" - from the inner front and rear jacket flaps. Seller Inventory # 004923

Bibliographic Details

Title: I Was Fighting For Peace, but, Lord, There ...

Publisher: Exposition Press, Hicksville, New York

Publication Date: 1979

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

Signed: Signed by Author(s)

Edition: 1st Edition