Platoon: Bravo Company
by Robert Hemphill
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert HemphillEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-08-03
ISBN: 0805991719
Number of pages: 202
Publisher: RoseDog Books
Book Reviews of Platoon: Bravo Company
Book Review: The real history of Oliver Stone's platoon...
Summary: 5 Stars
As many others have stated, Captain Robert Hemphill was SP4 Oliver Stone's company commander in Vietnam. He discusses in the forward his impressions of the movie with praise and criticism, but otherwise it isn't a factor throughout the book. He just wants it clear that this is his story of his experiences in Vietnam. The movie was Oliver Stone's impression of his time in Vietnam. No veteran's story will be identical.
I enjoyed the way Memphill relates the story through his eyes as a young company commander. It's nice to see the story told without the benefit of hindsight. He is honest and candid in telling it. I liked all of the quoted radio conversations. In my short time as a radio operator in the Infantry, I was shocked at how much an RTO can learn about what's going on higher up. The conversations relate a view that is rare in books such as this: the view from the middle. We often see stories from high ranking officer such as Colonels and, usually, Generals. We sometimes hear the story from the line enlisted level. We don't often hear stories from a company level officer. I found it fascinating to experience the care and love going down to the lower enlisted level and also the frustration and derision going up to the staff level. It was unusual.
Hemphill's telling of the story is basically a chronological account of his five months as commander of B 3/25 Infantry. It isn't a special operations, shoot 'em up story. It was a regular, line infantry company doing what they do. His writing isn't flashy. It's direct and straight-forward like a military officer usually speaks. Portions of the book are slow and even tedious, but so is the majority of combat. As Hemphill states,"Combat in Vietnam was endless boredom punctuated by moments of intense action." He gets this across well in the book. Robert Hemphill was a good officer that any line grunt would be honored to serve under. I'm glad he chose to tell the story of his company and what they really did.
I recommend "Platoon: Bravo Company" to anyone with an interest in military history, Vietnam, or military memoirs in general. It's a valuable addition to any book collection.
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