Lynda Van Devanter (1947–2002)

Lynda Van Devanter's memoir, HOME BEFORE MORNING (2001 reprint of 1983 edition), is a simply gut-wrenching look at what happened to a "good Catholic girl" from Virginia who volunteered as an Army nurse in Vietnam. Because even her actual tour there, filled as it was with the blood, mud and guts of a frontline evac hospital OR, pales in comparison to the chronic problems of her life when she got back home in 1970. In addition to the indifference and hostility she encountered from the civilian show more population, she experienced all the difficulties we now recognize to be associated with PTSD. Unable to hold a job, beset with night terrors and flashbacks, her personal affairs and relationships in disarray, she tried to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs until she finally hit bottom and was able to get counseling. Van Devanter holds nothing back as she tells of her bar-hopping and lonely, desperate one-night stands, constantly hoping "maybe this one." She finally does find a good man and marries, and also becomes deeply involved with the Vietnam Veterans Association Women's Project. Sadly, her marriage ends in divorce. But in the 2001 Afterword we learn she did remarry, although her health deteriorated, her immune system compromised, probably from her exposure to the Agent Orange defoliant in Vietnam. Lynda Van Devanter died in 2002. She was 55.

I read HOME BEFORE MORNING because it was referenced as a resource by Kristin Hannah in her monster best-selling novel, THE WOMEN, a book which I could not warm up to. And now, after reading Van Devanter's book, I can see where Hannah lifted whole sections, changed some names, added some schmaltzy romance and highly unlikely reunions for her legions of women fans, and voila! another bestseller. Yeah,I know. Fiction and memoirs, apples and oranges. But if you prefer the REAL story, read HOME BEFORE MORNING. It's a revealing and tragically honest portrayal of of one innocent young woman's coming of age under the most brutal conditions imaginable. RIP, Lynda, and a belated thank you for your sacrifices. Very highly recommended.

- Tim Bazzett, author of the Cold War memoir, SOLDIER BOY: AT PLAY IN THE ASA show less

Lynda Van Devanter wrote Home before Morning, which was published approximately 13 years after she returned home from her war service, as a form of therapy. Lynda vividly shows the effects of the war on her. She was a very optimistic person prior to serving; the beginning of the book about her nurse's training and traveling before going to Vietnam contains a lot of humor. The major part of the book describes in detail the horror of working as a nurse in Vietnam; how the Army medical center show more in which she served was inundated with service men (and some Vietnamese civilians including children) with severe injuries. The medical staff had to decide whom they could save; many of the people were seen as numbers instead of as human beings. Lynda had difficulty adjusting after returning home from her year in Vietnam; this adjustment is also described. Approximately ten years after returning, Lynda became involved in the Vietnam Veterans of America Women's Project, and found meaning in her life again.
This book was published eight years before Visions of War, Dreams of Peace, a volume of poetry about the Vietnam War by women who had been there, which Lynda edited. show less

Visions of War, Dreams of Peace is a collection of poetry written by women who had been to Vietnam during the war, edited by Lynda Van Devanter and Joan A. Furey. Most of the authors were military nurses although a few were from the Red Cross or American Friends Service Committee, one was an actress who had entertained the troops, and a few were Vietnamese. Many of the poems were very moving; some spoke of the women's experiences during the war, and some were about the after-effects of the show more war or visiting the Vietnam Memorial War in Washington, DC.

The year each poem was written is given immediately after the poem; some were written while the war was still going on and the women were still there, and others were written years later.

Includes a brief glossary of acronyms and military terms. and brief biographical information about each author including the dates she was in Vietnam.

Highly recommended. show less

I read The Women last February and just fell in love with the story. I wanted to read more. I saw this book mentioned. The memoir was fantastic. I loved hearing that this book was a part of her therapy. Lynda’s story sounded a lot like Frankie’s in The Women. It’s just heartbreaking what she had to deal with and what happened when she came back to the USA. I read that the show China Beach was based on some of her experiences. If you enjoyed The Women, I think you should read this one too.