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bookhawk's review against another edition
3.0
Alpha One Sixteen is a solid first person narrative of an infantry soldier’s experience in Vietnam. Clark writes well and presents the mix of enthusiasm and dread well.
pennyriley's review against another edition
4.0
A tell it like it is of one man's year in Vietnam. At the beginning his excitement at going to Vietnam is palpable, but soon enough a matter of fact tone is dominant. He describes dangerous skirmishes in much the same way he does the boring routines of being back at base. This doesn't detract from the writing at all although you might expect it to; the fact that he writes so dispassionately brings home some of the awfulness of being in Vietnam. He ends up in a favourable job close to the Unit Commander and knows a little sooner than others what is unfolding, or about to unfold. Until close to the end of his tour, his unit was relatively lucky, but the last chapter or so describes a huge battle in which many soldiers are killed or badly wounded, including him, and includes excerpts from others who were there. A couple of things irritated me; at the beginning he is continually telling you what Acronyms are with phrases such as 'in Vietnam speak' and he also gives some of his fellow soldiers real names, but often says ....'who I will call Name.' And you know that Name won't be doing anything good.
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