Joseph Allen Freeborn served in Vietnam from August 3, 1971 through March 16, 1972, stationed in Da Nang where the US Air Force had a major air base.

In Vietnam the author was attached to the 1st/46th – 196th Light Infantry Brigade, an off shoot of the Americal or 23rd Infantry Division, based in Chu-Lai, South Vietnam.

This book tells of this draftee’s struggles, sacrifices and ultimate survival of a war he wanted nothing to do with.

The author was born in Mineola, New York to a working class family, and at the age of 5, he moved to Marlboro, New York, where his parents bought an apple farm.

The letters recorded here are actual unedited reproductions of the letters he received in Nam and letters he sent home.

The author took many years to compile this book, with the hope that reader could get a better sense of that divisive war fought so many years ago. The thought of writing this book at first was overwhelming, as he had spent so much time and energy trying to forget his time in Vietnam. The author refers to his time in Nam as his “lost year”.

Today, after successful careers in design engineering and property development, the author is retired and lives a quiet life with his wife of 45 years. He has one grown daughter and 2 grandchildren. He still lives on the property his parents bought in 1956 as does his daughter and her family.

It is the author’s hope that by reading this book you might consider the hundreds of thousands of young men that had similar experiences during their time in Vietnam.