Memories Unleashed

"Carl Small waited fifty years to put down on paper what his war in Vietnam was like. There is no argument here, no quarrel with history, just a fierce focused account of one man's year in the kind of close combat that was hard to talk about and hard to forget. What Small pursues in these 43 stories is the strangeness of war, where nothing and everything mattered." ~Tom Powers

"Told through the perspective of a young marine squad leader serving in Vietnam, I can't imagine a more immediate and eloquent account of what it is like to experience the horror, the foreboding, even the tedium of war. Like the marine's sweetheart who awaits his love letters and return to their small town, I found myself praying page after page- be safe, come home, be safe, come home..." ~Jone B. Cole author of Good Naked: Reflections on How to Write More, Write Better, and Be Happier

“The combat action is well-described and all the stories are well told. [...] Complete stories can be told in a small number of pages if you do it right, and Small frequently does.” ~The VVA Veteran

"The recreations of war experiences are powerfully written in sincere, staccato prose. Those looking for a creative, slightly different type of Vietnam War memoir will find this one to their taste." ~Publishers Weekly

"The book is so rich with detailed descriptions; it is if it had happened yesterday. Many readers may find feeling it evokes difficult; they are so clear and powerful". ~Heather Steliga, Vermont Standard

"A fascinating read and I think it is worth saying thank you to author Carl Small for finally feeling able to write down his experiences and share them with the rest of us at last." ~Military Model Scene

‘’...for those interested in how the Vietnam War was fought on the ground. Small achieves total emotional immersion for the reader, not an easy effect to pull off in a slim volume. He brings the sights, smells, and sounds of the war to the page, assisted by his snapshot kodak photographs of young men sent into a situation for which few were prepared. Small rarely considers the wider war and what it meant, concerned more for his squad and their small and often violent world. Reading Small’s unleashed memories is an experience in itself.’’ ~Wargames Illustrated