Here is what readers are saying about my historical fiction novel, RECALL…
Lawson’s latest novel combines the facts of war in Vietnam with the drama of American history
Today’s authors who write novels about war, espionage and international intrigue usually sprinkle a bit of fact here and there within their fiction. Very little in most cases. In his sixth novel, “Recall,” R. Lawson laces his drama with a wealth of fact, drawn from arduous hours spent exploring now-released CIA files, from his personal experience as a flight surgeon and from his vivid memories, recalled from his service in Nam.
In his introduction Lawson writes, “As a country, we really need an honest assessment of how and why we engage in war. We should critically evaluate how we elect and judge our leaders’ moral compass to engage in, lead and conduct a war. We should also look carefully at how to end a war, defining victory in terms that anyone can understand. Vietnam has important lessons about the integrity of the nation’s highest office and its inner circle.“
Lawson knows of which he writes, and he writes with a flair and a reality you won’t find in many of the books being touted today. “Recall” deserves best seller status. Certainly it is a best teller in many respects.
It is an absolute must for any one who had exposure to the Vietnam war through actual combat service, for the friends and family who agonized over the 14 years it dragged on and for historians who constantly try to prove Napoleon wrong when he said history was a lie agreed upon.
More than nine million served tours for our country in Vietnam. And the entire conflict left a tragic chapter in American history. With a little military experience of my own and as a fellow-writer, I wholeheartedly recommend “Recall” for a number of reasons, not the least of which is by remembering the past, we may avoid similar mistakes in the future.
Richard Nixon said it: “No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now.”
Lawson’s latest novel goes a long way to setting things straight. Get it. Read it. Pass it on.
This is a story that explains the ‘whys’ and ‘why-nots’ of the Vietnam War.
The writer details the historical background of the Vietnamese culture and its resiliency to any enemy attempting to conquer their Country. It justifies the reasoning why no man can or should expect to win a war between two opposing factions within another man’s country.
The historical facts contained within the authors’ account are astounding to say the least. The senseless deaths of thousands of pilots sent on bombing raids authorized by LBJ is beyond comprehension.
It becomes a story that ends with the failure to “Win the War” and the only winning was “survival” and making it back home. I was involved with training 1,000’s of men to serve their country in Vietnam and am proud that many of them ‘made it back home’ because of the training I gave them.
I was fortunate to have been spared the actual living and dying experiences that is chronicled in the book. This book should be a “Best Seller” in my opinion, as it weaves a historical picture of true facts into the counter-culture that existed during those times.
An excellent historical novel based on the personal experiences and extensive research on the part of the author, a USAF flight surgeon who served in Viet Nam.This book can be read on several different levels. The story line is interesting and engaging. As the plot unfolds, the reader moves into and among the many phases and, indeed, the horrors associated with the war in Viet Nam. Up to this point, the book is not unlike many other excellent war novels of the time. However, the author takes it a step further with the introduction of Ann Summerville as a consultant to the military.
She was not part of the military, nor was she representing the government. As such, she was positioned to provide solid, rational and unbiased analyses of our role in Viet Nam and she did it with remarkable insights. She was able to ask the questions that everyone was afraid to ask, and she highlighted many mistakes that were made as we continued to push on with the war. Why were we there in the first place? Were we really committed to a winning strategy? In many ways, Ann Summerville provided the moral compass with which we could evaluate and judge our role in the conflict. Many mistakes were made, and many lessons were there to be learned. One wonders how well we learned those lessons in light of our subsequent involvement in the Middle East. Santayana said it best : “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” When will we ever learn?
This book combines elements of skillful reportorial writing with the vivid individual horrific experiences of war and human waste. The protagonists – caring, loyal, and heroic figures, the best America had to offer – were uniquely qualified to evaluate the mistaken rationales, the misjudged political assumptions, and even behavior of our national leaders which was seen as perfidious by those who were being dehumanized by bloody connect. When seen through the eyes of a flight surgeon, the suffering is an especially tragic and poignant outcome of bad direction from the very top of the chain of command and the corruption of allies. Not the least corrupting was the obfuscation of the true conduct of the war, both by governmental secrecy and distorted or slanted press accounts.
But there is redemption. The developments that occur between the major characters distill the tragedy to its most basic human elements. “Whatever happened to the perfect world I grew up in?” asks one of the characters – a question prophetic and rhetorical in its setting. Still, loving and noble relationships rise like buoys of goodness in the human spirit. Is this ascent is a paradigm for the resilience of the American character?
The book is released around the 50th anniversary of the Tet offensive, and renewed attention to the Pentagon Papers. It is a diary that should help put our current conversation in the context of what’s important – the care and protection of the individual in formulating national policy.
Accurately recreates the atmosphere and experience of a USAF Flight Surgeon in the run up of the war in Viet Nam. The sights, sounds and smells are spot on. The fear everytime a motorbike runs by or a helicopter overflys is real for our Viet Nam veterans and Lawson gives you clear insight into why their lives are changed forever.
His characters are constructed to engage the reader from page one and you finish wanting to have the survivors over for drinks and dinner. The historical analysis is unfortunately accurate and reminds us how much more we should be involved in our current political activity. Are we making the same mistakes now? Reading RECALL will demand that you answer.
This book is a through and complete review of all the reasons the United States became involved in Vietnam. A fictional sidelight is the story of four school buddies who each find themselves experiencing Vietnam from different perspectives. In total: RECALL will enlighten some readers about the Washington decision makers who tried to micro manage the Vietnam War and others will see the outcome of those decisions not being the results required to win the war. I served as an Infantry Platoon Leader in Vietnam and experienced the frustration of not being permitted to follow the enemy across into Cambodia to destroy their supply and training installations. That finally changed in April 1970 but it was too little and too late. The Vietnam War had been lost at home and the American public was sick and tired of the weekly casualty reports and no end in sight to the conflict.
Lawson has obviously seen war as it really exists. He is able to weave the narrative in a way that is valid and honest. Vietnam began as a noble call to service for hundreds of thousands of American youth. They answered the call. They believed and trusted their leaders and they let them down. Lawson allows us to view that war through the eyes of four young men who fought for themselves, their brothers, and this ungrateful nation and their dishonest leaders. Excellent read.
I enjoyed reading RECALL very much! Having lived in Vietnam, I was very appreciative of the realistic recount of a turbulent time in our history. R Lawson did his homework and his research was spot on. The comraderie of the four men and the relationship they shared during high school, college, the war, and the aftermath of life after the war was interesting and well written. I have recommended and gifted this book to many of my friends. Read it and enjoy!
Recall is a good read. It is realistic and tells the story of the men who fought this tragic war. The author brings this period and episode to life. The characters are real and their stories are developed well. This is a truer and more realistic telling of the Vietnam period than the recent Ken Burns series. Has an exciting and unexpected final ending! Highly recommended. J
