A Rumor of War is an American novel that was written by author and United States Marine Corps infantry lieutenant Philip Caputo. The book was published by Macmillan Publishers in 1977 in New York City. The novel is the story of Marine Lieutenant Philip Caputo as he landed in Danang with the first ground combat unit deployed in Vietnam. The novel follows his life for the next sixteen months until his deployment is over. He enters the war with thoughts of ending it very quickly in a few weeks or months. He then planned on returning home to a parade of thankful citizens cheering, shaking his hand, and telling him how much of a difference he has made in the world. What he actually finds is a rude awakening to the realities of a war. He is not fighting
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Like other young men at the time, he had a strong desire to prove himself as a man. At twenty years old while attending Loyola College, Caputo enlisted in the Marines ' ROTC program with the dream of ending his days of comfortable living in a small town. He has the hopes of being a hero and being more than what he is back home. At Basic Training, Advanced Individual Training and Officer School, Caputo learned about Marine history, military weapons, and tactics to use in battle. In January of 1965, Caputo got his first chance to prove himself. His first command as an officer begins with the men in the Third Marine Division in Okinawa, Japan. He is told that the marines are in a strictly defensive operation. They stare at maps, patrol the borders of the military base, go on the occasional patrol outside the base, and dig trenches and pile sandbags up to protect the base. As the months go on, the attacks and contact with the Viet Cong increase and become more and more violent. He is finally seeing the action he had hoped. As the months continue, however, Caputo and his men began to slowly show signs of psychological trauma from the stress they are enduring constantly. The men become depressed, begin to hate, and truly become “killers.” Caputo is later taken from the front line to receive training in Japan as an assistant adjutant before returning to headquarters back at Danang. In this new job, he
Like other young men at the time, he had a strong desire to prove himself as a man. At twenty years old while attending Loyola College, Caputo enlisted in the Marines ' ROTC program with the dream of ending his days of comfortable living in a small town. He has the hopes of being a hero and being more than what he is back home. At Basic Training, Advanced Individual Training and Officer School, Caputo learned about Marine history, military weapons, and tactics to use in battle. In January of 1965, Caputo got his first chance to prove himself. His first command as an officer begins with the men in the Third Marine Division in Okinawa, Japan. He is told that the marines are in a strictly defensive operation. They stare at maps, patrol the borders of the military base, go on the occasional patrol outside the base, and dig trenches and pile sandbags up to protect the base. As the months go on, the attacks and contact with the Viet Cong increase and become more and more violent. He is finally seeing the action he had hoped. As the months continue, however, Caputo and his men began to slowly show signs of psychological trauma from the stress they are enduring constantly. The men become depressed, begin to hate, and truly become “killers.” Caputo is later taken from the front line to receive training in Japan as an assistant adjutant before returning to headquarters back at Danang. In this new job, he