Frankie wants to make her parents proud. The idea that women can be heroes too, whispered in her ear by her brother’s friend, has never occurred to her before, but when it is uttered, it hits her like a breath of fresh air. What better way to make her father, especially, proud than to join his “wall of heroes” by enlisting and serving her country as an army nurse in Vietnam? What she finds, as she disembarks from that first plane, is nothing like she’d ever imagined. And what she encounters there, whether she likes it or not, will stay with her for the rest of her life.
Here is yet another MUST READ, gifted to us from Kristin Hannah. It is not an easy one. It is harsh but realistic in its graphic detail of the horrors of the Vietnam war. It is a constant reminder, again and again, of what is lost in each and every battle. It also is historically and acutely accurate in its documentation of how horrifically veterans of this war were treated upon return to their country after their service, as if it were their choice to continue the war that most were drafted to serve in. More importantly, for this story, it documents how horrifically the WOMEN veterans of the war were treated. These women were denied their very existence there. Frankie was told, again and again, “There were no women in Vietnam,” when in fact, there were thousands of women in Vietnam – nurses, and support staff – serving their country, endangering their lives, and witnessing the trauma every day of their lives there.
Is the story all doom and gloom? No, of course not. It is also a story about love. Frankie finds so many versions of love. She finds beautiful friendships that last her lifetime. She opens her heart enough to have it broken time and again, which hurts but also helps her to grow. She also learns to appreciate that love can be demonstrated in many ways, even if it is not how we’d prefer. Frankie also learns to love herself, as she succeeds and fails and succeeds again.
It is an inspiring, gruesome, and heartwarming saga of a woman’s search for meaning and for herself. It is hard – perhaps impossible – not to love this book.
kindread spirits 