In Pharaoh's Army

English language

Published Dec. 21, 1995

ISBN:: 978-0-679-76023-8

(1 review)

In Pharaoh's Army: Memories of the Lost War is the second memoir by American writer Tobias Wolff, published on October 4, 1994.The book chronicles the author's experiences as a US Army officer in the Vietnam War. Before beginning his year tour of duty proper in Vietnam, Wolff spent a year in Washington, D.C. learning the Vietnamese language; prior to that he had been trained as a paratrooper with Special Forces. Wolff was stationed with South Vietnamese Army soldiers near Mỹ Tho and he was present during the Communists' Tet Offensive. The memoir includes a recollection of that battle as well as vignettes of various personal experiences, both in and out of Vietnam. The book picks up more or less where Wolff's first memoir, This Boy's Life, leaves off. It was a National Book Award finalist for non-fiction.

1 edition

Zelanator reviewed In Pharaoh's Army by Tobias Wolff

Review of "In Pharaoh's Army" on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This is an excellent book about the sometimes strange experience of being an advisor in Vietnam, estranged from other American units and embedded within an alien culture where, as Wolfe says, sometimes your only accomplishment in a year was simply to survive. Tobias Wolff writes of his experiences with lucid prose and language that easily engrosses the reader. Highly recommended.

On a side note, Wolff is able to capture some of the identities that American advisors in Vietnam adopted during their tours of duty. Some were gung-ho, hoping to impose their will on their Vietnamese counterparts (although this was impossible), while others adopted a humanitarian mentality and saw an opportunity to reach the misfortunate, and still others "went native" and became more fixed in a quasi-Vietnamese identity than their old, American one. And some were like Tobias Wolff: neutral, uneasy adapting to his environment, constantly out of the loop with …

This is an excellent book about the sometimes strange experience of being an advisor in Vietnam, estranged from other American units and embedded within an alien culture where, as Wolfe says, sometimes your only accomplishment in a year was simply to survive. Tobias Wolff writes of his experiences with lucid prose and language that easily engrosses the reader. Highly recommended.

On a side note, Wolff is able to capture some of the identities that American advisors in Vietnam adopted during their tours of duty. Some were gung-ho, hoping to impose their will on their Vietnamese counterparts (although this was impossible), while others adopted a humanitarian mentality and saw an opportunity to reach the misfortunate, and still others "went native" and became more fixed in a quasi-Vietnamese identity than their old, American one. And some were like Tobias Wolff: neutral, uneasy adapting to his environment, constantly out of the loop with the latest intelligence, and satisfied to make his situation as comfortable as possible and just survive.