Vietnam Memoirs: Part 2: My Experiences as a Marine Advisor

Don Bonsper picks up where Part 1 left off: Don’s assignment to the Marine Advisory Unit in Saigon. His journey as an advisor starts with his assignment as the assistant advisor with the 2nd Battalion, Vietnamese Marine Corps (VNMC). The reader can see the challenges of working with the military forces of another country. Don leaves Vietnam for 6 days of Rest and Relaxation with his wife only to have South Vietnam explode with the Tet Offensive in January 1968. Don’s return to Vietnam quickly puts him back in harm’s way as he and the battalion work with the Mobile Riverine Force. When the senior advisor of the 2nd Battalion completes his tour of duty, Captain Bonsper becomes the only senior advisor with the rank of captain among the six VNMC battalions. He finishes his tour with the largest battle of his time in Vietnam. Similar to Part 1, this book is not full of glorified stories about combat. Rather it is the author’s best recollection of the day to day reality of working and living as an advisor with an elite unit of the Vietnamese military forces. His story is shared by hundreds of other US military officers who also served as advisors during the long war.