The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty by Ellen Emerson White | Teen Ink

The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty by Ellen Emerson White

February 10, 2010
By Steelersfan620 BRONZE, Brownville, Maine
Steelersfan620 BRONZE, Brownville, Maine
3 articles 0 photos 0 comments

The book I read was a book was The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty by Ellen Emerson White. Straight out of High School Patrick signs up for the United States Marine Corp in 1967. He gets sent out to a town in Vietnam called Khe Sanh. He is stationed on Hill 881 S near the main base. His Assignment was to is to go with a platoon of soldiers and go into the jungle and search for the NVA ( North Vietnamese Army ). while Patrick is stationed on the hill he becomes friend with the members of his platoon. His best friends were Hollywood, Professor, and Bebop. One day as the platoon was digging trenches around the hill one of his friends hits a mortar round that did not go off in a previous battle and it exploded killing him instantly. After seeing that horrifying sight Patrick rights home and says that he has never seen someone die before and hopes that he never will again. Unfortunately he is left to see many more of his friends and soldiers die for their country as the NVA attack the Main Base, Hill 881 N and S. As he lives on the hill he quickly learns that the fog will cut the visibility to zero in a matter of minutes without warning. During the war the NVA keep heavy pressure on the hill with devastating mortar attacks that result in many casualties. As the weeks go by the platoon starts to run low on food, water, ammunition, and mail in result of this morale gets low and patrick realizes how much war can really mess with with a persons mind. After many weeks off living in that indescribable environment Patrick and his company finally get the break that they need. the U.S. Army comes and “rescues” the marines. The Army took over and raised an American flag high on the hill top. Patrick and his company are airlifted off the hill to Quang Tri, a really big and safe base. Here they got all new uniforms, good food, and well needed showers. A couple days later Patrick finds himself in a Hospital in Quang Tri while having no recollection on how he had got there. He was severely wounded by a mortar round that had directly hit the tent that he and six other people were sleeping in. He later learns that six of his fellow soldiers were killed in that tent next to him while he was the only one that had got out alive. His closest friend Bebop had been killed in the hit. Thats all I can tell you without giving the whole story away.



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