Over There and Back Again: Việt Nam and Mỹ A Story of War, Peace, Love and Family

Doug Young- wounded veteran, infantry officer, patriot-saw enough blood and courage during the war in Vietnam to last two lifetimes. But this is not just another "My Year in the 'Nam" book, like the dozens already out there. This book asks: Why, after such a disastrous war, would a veteran return again and again to Vietnam, even live there for a while, and learn to deeply love the country and its people? Young's story goes deeper than most and introduces different lessons few Americans ever hear about. In parallel with events in Vietnam, his biography becomes a history lesson. What led to the war? How did a young man raised in a non-violent home become a professional soldier? How did America get involved in its most divisive conflict since its own civil war? Why did Doug avoid other Vietnam vets? Do the Vietnamese hate Americans today? Is Vietnam still the same poor country people saw in the 1970s news stories? Doug and his wife Cindy, also a veteran of the war serving in the Army Nurse Corps, returned in 2005-06 for another "tour of duty," surprising both themselves and those who knew them. They lived in the city of Hue, teaching English at the university, and becoming part of modern Vietnam. Cindy and Doug created a new future for themselves from the structures of the past. Doug's entire life is centered around Vietnam. He fought there. His son was born while he was there. He met his future wife there and they have adopted two Vietnamese daughters. Can good things arise from the evil that is war? This upbeat book says yes. And those good things can happen to the most ordinary of men.

Douglas Young is also the author of "Same River Different Water: A Veterans Journey from Vietnam to Việt Nam."