Patrol: an American Soldier In Vietnam

Christian Century, Dec 13, 2003

By Walter Dean Myers and Ann Grifalconi. HarperCollins, 32 pp., $16.95

A soldier's heart beats fast. He is "afraid to move ... afraid not to move." Who is the enemy? The old women, men and babies whose village was just bombed? The soldier suddenly spots a young man he's supposed to kill, and who is supposed to kill him. "In a heartbeat ... they have learned too much about each other." That night as he writes a letter to someone he loves, the American soldier realizes that he, too, is the enemy. This unrhymed story poem draws listeners and readers inside the thoughts and feelings of a young soldier. Effective collage artwork juxtaposes the beauty and wildlife of the forest with the realities of guns. (Ages 9-12)