Lindsay walks the reader through the danger, the heat, the emotions, and the fear that American Marines felt as they navigated the perils of everyday life during this controversial war. All of the men he served with were volunteers, nearly all inexperienced in combat, and many not even old enough to drink. His vivid memories of those difficult, sometimes heroic times bring alive the gutsy experiences of a Marine rifle platoon commander and those of the men with whom he served.
The author's real life experiences dispel many myths and images of what these men were like, what they did, and how they behaved. This memoir gives readers the unvarnished truth about what it meant to be a Marine in Vietnam.