OUT-OF-COUNTRY

About the Book

Few American citizens would disagree with the observation that the Vietnam War was probably the most tragic event to befall the American people since the the Imperial Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. The Vietnam War’s devastation was not limited to the loss of thousands of lives; the maiming of bodies and minds or the terrible waste of the worlds resources. A major, irrevocable injury was inflicted on the American psyche. We were all personally, politically, spiritually and psychologically effected. The conduct and the outcome of the war irreparably altered the way Americans now view the waging of war in general; the influence our politicians exert over the conduct of wars; the motives and the effectiveness of our military-industrial complex and the competency of our military leaders. Many excellent volumes--both fiction and non-fiction--have been written about the terrible residual effects of the war on its survivors, their families and those Americans killed while stationed ‘In-Country; that is, in Vietnam. The story which follows is an attempt to portray the profound effects which the Vietnam War had on those American military personnel who remained stationed ‘Out-of-Country’; that is, not in Vietnam, and thus suffered no physical war injuries or casualties. Yet these men and women also carry permanent, deep scars of this dreadful conflict

About the Author

Ron Aigotti has been freelance writing, both fiction and nonfiction, since 1982 after taking his first writing class at Indiana University at South Bend and four subsequent workshops. His works to date include twenty-seven short stories, six of which have been published in a small, national magazine called, GOOD OLD DAYS. Copies of each of his published short stories are enclosed. At one time he had been invited to join the staff of the magazine as a contributing editor but declined because of time constraints. In addition to his short story collection he has written, to date, five complete novels which are as yet unpublished. He has also completed and self-published a nonfiction work of 110,000 words related to his primary profession, i.e., medical oncology. The work entitled, THE PEOPLE’S CANCER GUIDE BOOK , has met with moderate success with sales of approximately 3000 copies to date. This work also received two favorable reviews: one by the library magazine, CHOICE; the second by THE MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW. Copies of both reviews are enclosed. In addition to this nonfiction work he has ventured into the field of longer fiction with his semi-biographical novel entitled The Wolves of Brooklyn also self-published under the auspices of AuthorHouse publishing firm in 2004 and has sold approximately one hundred copies. He has completed several other works of fiction which are currently available for publishing, i.e., OUT OF COUNTRY: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE VIETNAM WOUNDED WARRIORS; FLIGHT OF THE DALAI LAMA from ; CISCO’S LOVE SONG; P.I.T. The making of a child prodigy; and a work still in progress titled THREE FINGERS; the making of a MLB super star. As you can see the author is dedicated to, and made a long term commitment to creative writing, which is now his primary vocation since retiring from medical practice.