Sappers in the Wire : The Life and Death of Firebase Mary Ann (Texas a&m University Military History Series)

This dramatic narrative recounts the last high-casualty U.S. action in the Vietnam War. Military leaders and historians have attributed the disaster to a dereliction of duty in the ranks, but Nolan's interviews and research in declassified documents reveal that the 1971 incident had much in common with any surprise attack in which the officers are killed outright. He presents an intimate look at soldiers who performed in exemplary fashion under terrible circumstances.