From Jay Veith, respected Author & Researcher:
Please find below my review of a new POW book.
This is an excellent addition to the literature.
Review of Donald L. Price, The First Marine Captured in Vietnam: A Biography of Donald G. Cook (Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, 2007), by George J. Veith, author of Code Name Bright Light: The Untold Story of U.S. POW Rescue Efforts During the Vietnam War, and Leave No Man Behind: Bill Bell and the Search for American POW/MIAs from the Vietnam War.
The harsh captivity of American POWs in North Vietnam has been well-documented in numerous books, both biographical and historical. Less known are the horrors suffered by those held in South Vietnam. Although Nick Rowes Five Years to Freedom and Frank Antons Why Didnt You Get Me Out ably portray the debilitating diseases, harsh conditions, and high mortality rate of the primitive jungle camps, compared to the abundant stories of deprivations in the northern prisons, the POWs interned in the South are often overlooked.
Colonel Don Price has driven a stake into that omission with his outstanding biography of Marine Captain Donald G. Cook. Cook, who was captured on 31 December 1964 in one of the fiercest early battles of the war, died of malaria three years later traveling to another prison camp. His remains have never been recovered.
As the senior POW, he displayed such a fierce commitment to the Code of Conduct that even the hardened Communist camp cadre grew to respect him. More importantly, Cook repeatedly risked his own health to succor his fellow captives. His devotion to their welfare, refusal to submit to indoctrination efforts or physical threats to coerce political statements, eventually earned him the Medal of Honor. In the long history of the U.S. Marines, Donald Cook is the only Marine captive to ever win the nations highest award, or to have a U.S. Navy ship named after him. He won for reasons both simple and yet profound: in that merciless jungle, his continuing acts of valor were undertaken without regard to his personal safety or comfort, even if it meant his own death. Such courage is rare. To maintain it through long years of misery is almost beyond what words can portray in a single volume.
Fortunately for us, the author has achieved that goal. He weaves together the official record and the survivors stories to detail this compelling tale, including the perseverance of Cooks remarkable wife. Price has deeply researched Cooks life, providing us insights into his formative years that would eventually stand him well in the horrible conditions of the Communist prison camps. He succinctly outlines Cooks youth and education, how his Catholic upbringing provided him the moral underpinnings that allowed Cook to endure captivity. Price details the twin passions that sustained Cooks fortitude; his family and his religion. The author also shows how Cook consistently applied the leadership lessons superbly imprinted on young Marine Corps officers, and how those traits enabled Cook to earn the undying gratitude of his fellow prisoners.
The word heroic is too often applied to mundane actions. But Donald Cook deserves every bit of that honor, and Prices well-written biography clearly depicts Cooks unstinting fidelity through the words of the POWs who were with him and survived captivity. One fellow POW describes Cooks behavior as the highest standards of morality. With war once again simmering in a far away land, it is appropriate to recall the sacrifices of an earlier generation of American fighting men who answered their countrys call to duty. Marine Captain Donald G. Cook exemplifies that great tradition. His story is the saga of how one man can make a difference, even in the most excruciating circumstances.
I highly recommend this book. To order a copy, please visit www.mcfarlandpub.com, or call 1-800-253-2187.
Sincerely,
Jay Veith