| Title | : | Where They Lay: A Forensic Expedition in the Jungles of Laos |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0618562427 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780618562428 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 308 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2003 |
In far-flung rain forests and its futuristic lab near Pearl Harbor, the Central Identification Laboratory (CILHI) strives to recover and identify the bodies of fighting men who never came home from America’s wars. Its mission combines old-fashioned bushwhacking and detective work with the latest in forensic technology.
Earl Swift accompanies a CILHI team into the Laotian jungle on a search for the remains of Major Jack Barker and his three-man crew, whose chopper went down in a fireball more than thirty years ago. He interweaves the story of the recovery team's work with a tense account of Barker's fatal attempt to rescue trapped soldiers during the largest helicopter assault in history. Swift is the first reporter ever allowed to follow a recovery mission, as these unique archaeological digs are called, in its entirety, and he got his hands dirty, combing the jungle floor for clues amid vipers, monsoons, and unexploded bombs.
Where They Lay: A Forensic Expedition in the Jungles of Laos Reviews
-
I really liked this book about an anthropological dig along the Ho Chi Minh trail searching for men lost in a helicopter crash in Vietnam. I laughed and I cried. It did not end as I expected, but there was a pretty nice resolution nonetheless. Loved reading about the lives of the men lost in Vietnam and the sacrifices made to search for their remains. Loved experiencing the dedication of military and civilian personel toward this endeavor. Loved visualizing the dignified ceremonies honoring the remains of soldiers brought home 30-40 years after the war's conclusion. I only wish the soldiers who returned alive in the 1970's could have experienced some appreciation and respect from the american people.
-
Earl Swift gives such attention to detail. At times, I was so engrossed into the book. I felt like I was right there with them. I loved the photos and diagrams on the pages to help me visualize what was happening at times.
I realized reading this that I really don't know much about the Vietnam War. And what the service men sacrificed and went through. It was very interesting. -
Probably the best non-fiction book I've read in a while love the flow first page to last.
-
Swift does an excellent job of relating the difficulties that crews face in attempting to locate and repatriate the remains of U.S. military members that were lost in combat or accidents. He was permitted to join a recovery crew in Laos and work with them on a site to find the remains of four army personnel who were shot down in their Huey helicopter while trying to rescue South Vietnamese military trapped in a failed operation. These brave men knew they were flying into almost certain death, but made the heroic choice to go anyway.
The military and civilian crew that attempts to locate their remains are heroic in their own way. They endure horrible conditions of extreme heat and humidity, poisonous animals, unexploded ordinance, and often less than truthful locals and foreign governments. I was in awe of what they endured in their efforts and admire them greatly. I'm thankful that there are individuals that see the value of returning the missing to their families and their country. And I am thankful that the U.S. government devotes money and personnel to this worthwhile endeavor. -
For the most part, a very interesting look at what goes into locating and identifying undiscovered military remains, in this case from the Vietnam War era. It goes on a little too long, and gets pretty repetitive in places, but that almost perfectly describes the search process. The book poses some interesting questions, such as is it really worth all these millions of dollars to send expeditions out attempting to locate a few pieces of bone. How you feel about that would probably depend on your view of the military's "leave no man behind" credo, and there probably isn't any right or wrong answer.
-
Superb!
