Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
|
Loading... Bloods: Black Veterans of the Vietnam War: An Oral History (edition 1985)by Wallace Terry
Work InformationBloods: Black Veterans of the Vietnam War: An Oral History by Wallace Terry
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.   villemezbrown | Apr 16, 2024 |  I learned a lot of things through these men's stories. (  ) personalbookreviews | Sep 19, 2023 | ) pepperabuji | Jun 18, 2020 |  ) jonfaith | Feb 22, 2019 | The African American men in Bloods tell their story in their own words, the way they experienced it. Their dialects show through the written speech. Each chapter is more moving and emotional than the next, dragging the reader down into the depths of war, creating an emotional investment in each person mentioned. But the stories are not only about the battle on the front lines but the battle inside themselves, behind the lines, and back at home. Each soldier discusses their views on the Civil Rights movement that is happening while they were away and its impact on them while they are at war. The emotions are still heavy as they tell stories of black, white, Hispanic, Asian, an American soldier is a brother. Others run into different scenarios of racism behind the line and sometimes their abilities to overcome it. Even though Bloods was originally published in 1984, many words of the men who told their stories can still ring true today. Armchair historians, military fans, young adults, and anyone interested in a true horror story should read this oral history, but a minor amount of previous knowledge of the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights movement is recommended for true comprehension. These men should be honored for being willing to share with the world their experiences in such a sensitive and life-changing time period. No doubt the rapport and trust built between the men and Terry while they were in the battlefield contributed greatly to their willingness to be interviewed after their return stateside. It is through that bond of trust that the public is graced with a rich primary resource such as Bloods. For more information, please visit Wallace Terry’s website To purchase Bloods, please click here. ( ) AprilGibbs | Jun 6, 2014 | no reviews | add a review
Has as a student's study guide
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK * The national bestseller that tells the truth about the Vietnam War from the black soldiers' perspective. An oral history unlike any other, Bloods features twenty black men who tell the story of how members of their race were sent off to Vietnam in disproportionate numbers, and of the special test of patriotism they faced. Told in voices no reader will soon forget, Bloods is a must-read for anyone who wants to put the Vietnam experience in historical, cultural, and political perspective. Praise for Bloods "Superb . . . a portrait not just of warfare and warriors but of beleaguered patriotism and pride. The violence recalled in Bloods is chilling. . . . On most of its pages hope prevails. Some of these men have witnessed the very worst that people can inflict on one another. . . . Their experience finally transcends race; their dramatic monologues bear witness to humanity."--Time "[Wallace] Terry's oral history captures the very essence of war, at both its best and worst. . . . [He] has done a great service for all Americans with Bloods. Future historians will find his case studies extremely useful, and they will be hard pressed to ignore the role of blacks, as too often has been the case in past wars."--The Washington Post Book World "Terry set out to write an oral history of American blacks who fought for their country in Vietnam, but he did better than that. He wrote a compelling portrait of Americans in combat, and used his words so that the reader--black or white--knows the soldiers as men and Americans, their race overshadowed by the larger humanity Terry conveys. . . . This is not light reading, but it is literature with the ring of truth that shows the reader worlds through the eyes of others. You can't ask much more from a book than that."--Associated Press "Bloods is a major contribution to the literature of this war. For the first time a book has detailed the inequities blacks faced at home and on the battlefield. Their war stories involve not only Vietnam, but Harlem, Watts, Washington D.C. and small-town America."--Atlanta Journal-Constitution "I wish Bloods were longer, and I hope it makes the start of a comprehensive oral and analytic history of blacks in Vietnam. . . . They see their experiences as Americans, and as blacks who live in, but are sometimes at odds with, America. The results are sometimes stirring, sometimes appalling, but this three-tiered perspective heightens and shadows every tale."--The Village Voice "Terry was in Vietnam from 1967 through 1969. . . . In this book he has backtracked, Studs Terkel-like, and found twenty black veterans of the Vietnam War and let them spill their guts. And they do; oh, how they do. The language is raw, naked, a brick through a window on a still night. At the height of tension a sweet story, a soft story, drops into view. The veterans talk about fighting two wars: Vietnam and racism. They talk about fighting alongside the Ku Klux Klan."--The Boston Globe No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)959.704History and Geography Asia Southeast Asia Vietnam 1949-LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (4)
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wikipedia in English (6)
3