Military Life - Service or Career: by John McClarren

Published: Createspace Publishing

Paperback and Kindle

224 Pages

About the Book

Military Life - Service or Career is a book for young people who are interested in the military as a service, or a career.   It should help anyone trying to make such a decision

It is also for older readers who have had military service and would like a good read to reminisce about the old times and remember their own experiences.

It is also a good read for those who enjoy reading about military affairs or engagements. I include many of my personal experiences as examples of my major points in the book.

The book is informative, exciting, sad, and at times, very humorous, all in one volume. It is full of stories that are entertaining, as well as educational and emotional. It emphasizes the good, as well as the less than good elements and what to expect. 

Buy at Amazon

Buy at Barnes & Noble

Reviews:

"John and Debbie McClarren are friends from my hometown in Oscoda, Michigan. John felt that joining service, or considering joining service should be no surprise, shock, or blind experience. He clearly shares his experiences in boot camp and in peaceful and wartime action. No holds barred. 

He offers many sides to the decision about whether to join or not join in the first place. He emphasizes PERSONAL ORGANIZATION and ACCEPTING STRESS and making it work for you. I believe even if a young man or woman chooses NOT to join one of the services he/she understands more about the importance of these two assets in any career. 

I am gifting this book to my own grandsons and highly recommend it as a GOOD READ and ESSENTIAL MANUAL in making a choice that could lead to a temporary term of service or a lifetime career. I bought this first in Kindle and then 2 copies in paperback to share with family and friends." --L. Bartus


"Good read! In "Military Life – Service or Career", John McClarren writes an interesting perspective on reasons why a career in the military can be a very wise choice for some people. It also acknowledges that it is not the life all may desire. 

McClarren shares many of his personal experiences from his military career, including tours to Vietnam. He writes with vivid descriptions, family experiences in their military service, and a sense of humor. 

Although today’s military life may be slightly different than the days of Vietnam with its more ‘strict’ military atmosphere, it should give a young person who is considering this as a career, or just a few years of service, an idea of what military life is like. Interesting and informative!" --D. Chase

John McClarren - US Army (Retired)

About the Author

John McClarren was born at the end of World War II in San Diego, California.  He grew up in southern California, developing into a "beach rat" early in life. 

Body surfing was one of his primary activities, and he developed his publishing logo because of that very strong interest. 

Some major influences caused him to gravitate toward the military for a lifelong career, although circumstances also oriented him toward education. 

He ended up majoring in German and minoring in English at the University of Arizona after having been active in the US Army and serving a tour of duty in the Republic of South Vietnam. Including reserve components, he served a total of thirty years with the Army, as well as being a high school teacher for twenty of those years. 

His first published book is currently available in print and e-book formats, titled Military Life - Service or Career, A Soldier's Perspective. He has a memoir coming out shortly, titled Taking Risks, Defining Life

John and his wife, Debbie, raised three boys together, two of whom have been on active duty with the US Army and one is a geologist. Of the two who have been in the Army, one became a heavy equipment operator, the other a forester with the US Forestry Department. 

John is currently living in northern Michigan. He is retired from everything but writing and substitute teaching, and Debbie is still an active special education teacher.

Besides his first two books, John is working on a humor book that most likely will be titled Hey, it Wasn't My Fault, and he is also working on a novel, but that may take a while before completion, and it is already looking like it may well become a lengthy series. The reason for that is because it is going off into a realm of no time and no space; at least not with any dimensions or limitations. It is a spiritual realm, but one with physical beings as well.

John's Website
John's Facebook Page


“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale


Feel free to comment on this post. You are also invited to write about anything you want to share. Memoirs From Nam is YOUR blog. You are writing America's history.

Send it to me in an e-mail and I will be proud to post it for you.

The Blades Carry Me: Inside the Helicopter War in Vietnam

by James V. Weatherill

With Anne Weatherill


About the Book

James V. Weatherill served as an Army helicopter pilot in Vietnam from November 1967 to November 1968.

His memoir, "The Blades Carry Me: Inside the Helicopter War in Vietnam", takes the reader into the CH-47 Chinook helicopter cockpit and involves them in the daily life of a 22-year-old pilot.

The young man must reconcile his ideals of patriotism, courage, and honor, with the reality and politics of a war where victory is measured by body-count ratios, instead of territory gained, or lost. 

When it's time to go home, he realizes he will leave more than war behind ...

The pilot's wife, Annie, provides the written perspective of a pregnant college senior and military spouse who waits for him back on the home front, during an unpopular war.  

With letters and tape recordings as their sole means of communication, how will they grow up without growing apart?


Anne Weatherill: 

"I think one thing that makes our book special is that we wrote it together, so it tells both sides of the personal effect of war. It was difficult, because we had to relive it over and over while we wrote it. For us, it was a milestone in our path to healing. 

What happened to each of us during that time is still with us, but it does not "own" us anymore. It has brought us closer together. 

We are encouraging others to "slay their dragons", refute the stereotypes, and tell the true history of that military action."

James and Anne Weatherill

Where to Buy:

Amazon - Paperback and Kindle
Barnes & Noble - Paperback 

Jim's Website

eMail Jim







A Few of the Many 5-Star Reviews:

"I was there with Jim in 1968. I spent my time over the cargo hook watching ammo, 105 Howitzers, dismantled UH-1s, C-rations, concertina wire, and anything else that needed to be moved. Jim's recollection of the life in a "hook" company is spot on. It brought a flood of great (and not so great) memories as I relived my youth in the pages of this fabulous book. 

 Anne brought to life the worries of a wife coping with pregnancy, school, and the nightly news. A combined story of the generation that went to war in Southeast Asia. I highly recommend this work to anyone interested in that part of history that we label the Vietnam Conflict. A great tribute to "Big Windy".
--Jerry S. Sears 

"I still have butterflies in my stomach after completing this autobiography in three sittings. James Weatherill's painstakingly detailed memory had me hovering with him in the cockpit of his helicopters between the thunderclouds and the Vietnamese landscape. 

Punctuated by Anne's own domestic vignettes of life back home in America, juggling university and the birth of her daughter, the point-and-counterpoint flow of this highlight provided the right amount of adventure and relief, respectively. And James' aerial recollections occasionally read like poetry with descriptions such as "I feel like witness to murder, fleeing in disbelief, looking for an amnesia cloud. 

"THE BLADES CARRY ME" is a unique contribution to the great body of Vietnam War literature. I especially recommend it to anyone curious about the human beings who fought the war, because in this book one experiences the entire spectrum of human personality."
--Robert Grayson 

"A fine, expertly written book that provides indelible images of the Helicopter War, of those who fought it, and those who awaited anxiously for their safe return. Time and time again, Jim flies the huge CH-47 Chinook in and out of hot fire zones, delivering troops, ammo, food--extracting wounded or rescuing downed comrades from enemy infested sites. 

Annie, pregnant and determined to finish college, fights her own inevitably lonely battles on the home front. 

 They tell their stories in tight, well-chosen present tense prose that carries a reality spanning more than four decades, showing us how it was, and what it was for thousands of twenty something American patriots. 

There's pain, there's joy, and there's the eternal issue of how we treat those who go into harms way to protect our way of life. An important book. Read it."
--Robert Knotts 

"This book is not just another war story. It is an unveiling of a couple's lives and relationship while separated by the Vietnam war. The authors' unique perspectives and witty humor help to balance the heaviness of their reality. A personal and well written account about living to make history and honoring those who didn't make it. I recommend reading this book."
--Christine Mackleit 

"Jim and Anne Weatherill wrote the story of many of the Warrant Officer Pilots in Vietnam and their families at home. It has not been told any better or truer. 

I was a Chinook pilot in a sister company in Pleiku, Vietnam. The events and feeling he and Anne talk about did happen. I was also there at the same time in the same places in the central highlands. The exact story may vary, pilot by pilot, but a similar story could be told by most of us. 

I knew Jim in Vietnam only as one of the pilots that came up to help from the "Big Windys." I got to know him and his wife well in Fort Benning, after we both returned from Vietnam. 

The people in the book, Jim and Anne, are real people telling a true story. Their personalities as told in the book are authentic. Jim was a great pilot and was never afraid to tell someone what he believed. Anne is just as witty in real life as she is in the book. The emotions they shared were felt by many pilots and their wives and mothers back home. 

The book was a hard read at times and I had to put it down because it brought back memories I have tried to forget. I am buying a copy for my son because they tell the story better than I ever could.  Thank you Jim and Annie for telling our story."
--Roger N. Lesch 

"If you want the real story of flying Chinooks in Vietnam you have to read this book. Jim and Anne's story of surviving the deployment to Vietnam in 1968 is riveting. You will feel like you know this amazing couple after reading this book. 

Anne's perspective as an Army wife really moved me. As a Soldier I really never understood how hard it is on those left waiting on loved ones at home. Jim lived three lifetimes in his year as a 22 year old WO1 pilot in command in Vietnam. 

This book accounts what real bravery and patriotism look like."
--Travis W. Wallace

Jim with Wife, Anne

About the Author

James Weatherill lives in Texas with his wife, Anne, who also helped to write the book, but from her own unique perspective -- that of a young wife waiting at home.

James has been a pilot since 1963. He flew helicopters in Vietnam 1967-68 amassing 1,341 combat hours throughout the west, logging, fire fighting, and constructing dams, power lines and ski lifts.

He later flew for commuter, regional and national airlines, retiring as a Boeing 737 Captain with flights ranging from Alaska to Peru.

He is adding time to his schedule for more writing, playing his guitars, and is looking forward to traveling America with Anne.

“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale


Feel free to comment on this post. You are also invited to write about anything you want to share. Memoirs From Nam is YOUR blog. You are writing America's history.

Send it to me in an e-mail and I will be proud to post it for you.

Inside the Wire: by Tom Allemeier

E-book
Published by Smashwords
$1.99
Word Count:  59,630

About the Book:

The majority of American troops in Vietnam were not involved in the shooting war. They did have their issues, however.

Written over 30 years ago, this series of anecdotes takes you through two years in the life of one such soldier, from being drafted until after being discharged. 

From the Local Draft Boards to Nixon’s War on Drugs, it’s all here.

Buy on Smashwords

An Interview with Tom Allemeier

Tom Allemeier

About the Author

Tom Allemeier was born in Lima, Ohio, in 1950. He spent his early childhood playing football and baseball with the neighbor boys, and exploring the woods with his dog, Skip.

His parents divorced when he was ten and he spent the next few years living in Columbus, Ohio, and downtown Lima.  He then returned to live with his father and stepmother in his childhood home until he graduated from Elida High School in 1969.

Allemeier was drafted into the Army in March 1970, spent fourteen months in Vietnam and served until October 1972.

He worked a number of jobs and then, still working, attended Ohio State University and graduated in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in journalism.

In 1996, he returned to Vietnam as a tourist, fell in love with the place, and he has been living and working there ever since as an English teacher at the International English School in Ho Chi Minh City.

Visit Tom Allemeier on Facebook

“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale


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Book: "The Sky Behind Me: A Memoir of Flying & Life"

by Byron Edgington

Biblio Publishing (May 2013)
Paperback, Kindle, ebook
304 Pages

About the Book:

The Sky Behind Me: A Memoir of Flying & Life is an aviation memoir, and much more. It's about life balance, resilience, grace and the necessity we all feel to take off again regardless of how hard we crash.

The author had a childhood dream of the missionary priesthood. After abuse in a Catholic seminary at age fourteen, he was dismissed, his dream taken away. 

He was drafted out of college at the height of the war in Vietnam, entered flight school and served for a year in the war. The irony is rich: He'd dreamed of anointment to the priesthood, then a posting to an exotic land where he would meet people who needed his help, and serve them. 

Instead, he was anointed a Warrant Officer in the Army, sent to an exotic land, where he looked for those same people and assisted in killing them.

The Sky Behind Me is a true "lemons into lemonade" story of one man's resolve to use his skills as a pilot to fulfill the altruistic impulses of his childhood, and he succeeds beyond his wildest imaginings.

Buy at Amazon


Reviews:

“… makes me ready and waiting for Byron Edgington’s next book.” ~Timothy Hurley

“It’s nostalgic and endearing and touching and sentimental and contains some great stories.” ~Buzz Malone

“Well written with character description and dialogue that points a colorful picture.” ~Harrison Jones

“My criteria for a good book are: It must be technically clean (spelling, punctuation, grammar), it must be stylish (whether transparent style or effectively odd), and it must immerse me in its world. The Sky Behind Me meets all these requirements …” ~Marian Allen

“… this book will enlighten, fascinate and keep your mind focused and thinking about what Byron Edgington presents in this fascinating, thoroughly enjoyable memoir. Wonderfully written, highly entertaining... simply a damn good read.” ~Kevin W. Johnson

“Without a doubt the best book I've read in 2014, and I am to books what the average American is to the television set … well done, Byron.” ~Don Wills

“The author provides a very clear honest look at his life in the service and as a pilot and his thoughts in each event. I was able to relate to his experiences very easily.” ~Greg Mudd

“…This is one of the few books that I have read lately that, when I reached the last page, I was disappointed that there weren't more chapters.” ~R. Ratliff

Byron Edgington/101st Airborne Ret.

About the Author:

Byron Edgington is a retired commercial helicopter pilot and recent graduate of The Ohio State University. He received his Bachelors in English from OSU in June 2012 at age 63. 

Edgington's most recent book is titled The Sky Behind Me, a Memoir of Flying and Life, which is based on his 40 year career in aviation.

Byron Edgington is the winner of The Bailey Prize for non fiction for his essay titled 'Lift Off', in which he writes about caring for his dying father. It was published in the 2012 edition of the Chrysalis Reader offered by the Swedenborg Foundation Press. 

His works in progress include a family memoir, working title Growing up Crowded, or When I was Eleven and Waiting for Willie Pete, a Helicopter Novel of Vietnam.  It will be finished ... someday. [See his website for more publishing credits.]

Byron Edgington is a father, step-father and grandfather. Married to his best friend, Mariah, he lives and writes in Columbus Ohio.

Byron's Website
Byron's Blog

Byron's Goodreads Profile

"I used to live in the sky; now I write about it." ~Byron Edgington

“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale