Unceremoniously dumped in the orphanage by their drunken, war-traumatized father, Don and his brother Mike learn the harsh realities of life. We can feel the fear of the tormented child and smell the antiseptic dormitory. Not all is bad there, for it is during this time that the young Donald sees his true love, Annette, for the first time. Her brunette hair, twinkling eyes and heart-melting smile are what help sustain the warrior's sanity and focus during some of his darkest moments, which are yet to come. Don was a 'malcontent renegade' in the eyes of the nuns, because he fought for his dignity and that of his brother. Recalcitrant, yet gregarious, Don is dismissed from the orphanage with his brother, and returned to the father who had abandoned them. No hope for the future leads the seventeen-year-old boy, old beyond his years, to a recruiter's office and the Army.
In August 1967, after a tour in Alaska and six months in Germany, the young paratrooper volunteers for duty in the Republic of Vietnam and is initially assigned to the 173d Airborne Brigade. Then, he hears a call for volunteers and joins a new long range patrol unit being formed, with the motto "I Serve," and the charter of taking the war to the enemy. Expertly weaving heart-thumping moments as enemy soldiers walk past within mere feet of patrols, the cacophony of battle and copper-taste of adrenaline during contacts, and the stark contrasts of the war, Don Hall takes us on his tour with the Lurps. We feel the anguish of losing teammates, and share the love for comrades. We see the oblivious eyes of the enemy walking toward an ambush, and the handmade wooden cross prepared by a soldier for a dead enemy tossed from a helicopter. We hear the cries of the wounded and the soft strains of songs on the radio. We feel the hurt and anger of the young boy, and the power and control of the soldier as he serves.
