Warriors and Widows is a war novel. The time is from September of 1965 to February of 1966. The characters are from a platoon of the 1st Battalion, Sixteenth Infantry, 1st Infantry Division assimilated and trained at Ft Riley, Kansas and then sent to Vietnam to search out and destroy the enemy.

Search and Destroy is their only mission. They typically roamed the jungles for twenty-five days at a time hunting the enemy, killing them and destroying all of their dwellings and supplies. As the story progresses and the men’s experiences in combat grows so does the costs of war.

Costs are levied on all involved in the war. Men, kill and are killed, women’s husbands, and sweethearts back home are wounded and killed. North and South Vietnamese are similarly affected by the battles. As time goes on the searchers and destroyers realize that they are also destroying themselves and their loved-ones.


About the Author:

When we (his children- all five of us ) were little, we thought it was very strange to see a man in shorts and not have a wooden leg. We thought it looked gross that other fathers had two legs and there was some thought that, like a pollywog loosing his tail it might happen to us. That was ok of course- it didn’t seem to slow Dad down. I remember trying to emulate the gate of his walk- slightly asymmetric as it was- it still looked cool. He would use it to his advantage in business. When hiring or disciplining a new worker he would often punctuate the interview by wielding a pocket knife as he spoke and at the appropriate moment, bury it in his wooden leg to the horror of the employee. Followed of course by laughter to the point of tears.

As you read this book do not let it be lost on you the absolute joy the author, my father takes in living. Although this war haunted and in some ways defined him as it does all true soldiers, he always talked about it. He is the master of the oral narrative and that shines through in his writing. He also has a third degree black belt in Shoan Ryu and benches 400 or so pounds pretty regularly.

If the love and respect of his children and grand children means anything, my father is a wealthy man.

This book made for him what he made the Vietnam War for us his children- a story to be told with adventure drama, sorrow and laughter. His wish I’m sure is that it does you the same.
-Troy Gleeson