Those Who Remain: Remembrance and Reunion After War

MWSA Review

Being a Vietnam Veteran myself, I’m one of the millions who returned to the “World” and put the War behind me.  I simply melded back into American society and became a “regular” person.  I discarded my past and started anew.  It wasn’t until forty years later that I revisited my past and learned a great deal about myself when I co-authored memoirs of my service to my country.

In the last 15 years there has been a plethora of memoirs and historical analysis about what transpired in this long and tragic War.  In reading Ruth Crocker’s memoir “Those Who Remain: Remembrance and Reunion After War,” we all see Vietnam in a much different context.  We’ve seen Vietnam from the soldier’s view, the politician’s view and the historians view.  However have we seen this War from the view of young wives who have lost their husbands who were only in their 20’s?  Do we know of their insights and problems?  How did they cope with such tragedies?

Utilizing quick and easy to understand prose, Mrs. Crocker uncovers her long struggle in trying to understand her short marriage and the purpose of what had transpired in her long 40 year struggle in determining what it’s all about.  Her book is both revealing and represents the maturing of a young lady to a wise matron giving proof that life is indeed worth living.

This is a truly inspirational book meant to be read by people searching for hope and purpose.

Reviewed by: Richard Geschke (2015)

Author's Summary

A secret is revealed long after the battlefield death in Vietnam of a beloved and courageous army officer. His young widow, in an act of grief and love, buries their letters and significant memorabilia, and climbs to the north face of the Eiger in the Swiss Alps to scatter his ashes. She discovers years later that those who survived the war - his comrades devoted to keeping his memory alive - would bring the ultimate healing into her life. The book ends with the disinterment of the letters more than forty years later. A compelling true story with a surprising revelation for those who seek to understand the sources of resilience and emotional transformation following heartbreaking loss, demonstrating the tenacious will of the human spirit to heal.