Matterhorn [Hardcover]MATTERHORN is the phenomenal first-novel by Karl Marlantes about the experience of being a Marine infantryman in Vietnam. Even if you didn't know (from the book's back cover) that the author is a veteran of that conflict, you'd know from the very first page that he'd been there and experienced or witnessed all it had to offer: the mud, leeches, jungle rot, immersion foot, drenching rain, fog, mosquitoes, tigers, C-rations, dank hooches, weaponry, scout dogs, jungle marches, razor-sharp elephant grass, barbed wire, entrenchments, infantry assaults, mortar attacks, battlefield first-aid, perilous helicopter missions, racism, fraggings, exhaustion, supply failures, death of friends, horrific wounds, land mines, incompetent command leadership, ammunition shortages, dysentery, close-up and personal killing, terror, boredom, homesickness, short-timer sticks, and blood-lust. Also, the simple pleasures of a warm Coke or hot coffee on the front lines or a cold beer and cleansing shower in the relative relaxation of a rear staging area.
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