The Killing Zone, My Life in the Vietnam War by Frederick Downs

A relatively short, hard-hitting account of Lt. Downs's time as a platoon commander in Delta Company, Third Brigade, Fourth Division, U.S. Army in Vietnam in 1967. The book is written in a diary form and Downs does not go into his political views or his views on the war as a whole; just what it was like to battle the VC hand-to-hand in the jungles of I Corps. After reading this book, there will be no doubt in your mind that Downs earned his four Purple Hearts, Bronze Star with Valor, and Silver Star. I could barely put this book down once I opened it.