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  • Published: 15 May 2004
  • ISBN: 9780891418443
  • Imprint: Ballantine
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 224
  • RRP: $19.99

Warriors

An Infantryman's Memoir of Vietnam




On the ground, in the air, and behind the lines, grunts made life-and-death decisions every day—and endured the worst stress of their young lives.

It was the tumultuous year 1968, and Robert Tonsetic was Rifle Company commander of the 4th Battalion, 12th Infantry in Vietnam. He took over a group of grunts demoralized by defeat but determined to get even. Through the legendary Tet and May Offensives, he led, trained, and risked his life with these brave men, and this is the thrilling, brutal, and honest story of his tour of duty. Tonsetic tells of leading a seriously undermanned ready-reaction force into a fierce, three-day battle with a ruthless enemy battalion; conducting surreal night airmobile assaults and treks through fetid, pitch-black jungles; and relieving combat stress by fishing with hand grenades and taking secret joyrides in Hueys.

During that fateful year, as unrest erupted at home and politicians groped for a way out of the war, Tonsetic and his men did their job as soldiers and earned the title “Warriors.”

  • Published: 15 May 2004
  • ISBN: 9780891418443
  • Imprint: Ballantine
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 224
  • RRP: $19.99

About the author

Robert Tonsetic

Robert Tonsetic served two tours in Vietnam, the first with the 199th Light Infantry Brigade in 1967-68, and the second as a Senior Advisor to ARVN Airborne and Ranger battalions in III and IV Corps in 1970-71. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism during the Tet Offensive and the Silver Star for heroism during the May Offensive of 1968. In 1991, Tonsetic retired from the Army at the rank of Colonel with 27 years of service. He earned a Doctorate in Education and taught for fice years as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Central Florida. He and his wife Polly, who served with the American Red Cross in Vietnam, have two grown sons. WARRIORS is his first book.