William Shatner Book:

Editorial Review:
An audiovisual book read by William Shatner.

David Quinn was an aimless college freshman in 1964.  At 18 years of age he was the product of a more apathetic time.  He paid scant attention to the profound worldly exchanges that would soon take over his life.  Faced inevitably with the draft, he acquiesced naively, assuming it would be the easy way out.  It was only the beginning of his troubles.

They began in Vietnam, where as one of many young American males yanked from a complacent life of TV war and college social life, Quinn did not belong.  The problems compounded in North Vietnam, where he was stranded after hitching a ride on an ill-fated spotter plane.  Almost miraculously he made it back to friendly territory, unscathed without even firing his weapon.  Although he did not know it at the time, he brought something back with him; secrets which would follow him for the next two years into civilian life.

There were others who were not so lucky.  Those who did not make it back.  But this was not Quinn's concern. He had served his country.  He had fulfilled his commitment.  Or at least he thought...until they asked him to go back.

AGENT ORANGE is the story of one of the earliest POW rescue attempts of a downed US Navy pilot, the son of a Pentagon Admiral.  Moreover, in the symbolic shadow of the misused herbicide Orange, the book reflects the many frustrations of the Vietnam War and a moral dilemma relating not only to Southeast Asia but all armed conflicts throughout the ages.  How does one learn to kill?

Agent Orange Reviews:
Disappointing
2009-10-18 - This book starts out interesting enough, but soon the plot devolves. Obvious questions go unanswered. And in the end, the book does not come to a satisfactory conclusion. I found it unfulfilling.

Heroes in the mist
2008-03-04 - This novel brings to life the feelings of an era most
Americans would rather forget. I think that this is probably Mr. Hay's intention - That Americans never forget. What our soldiers were asked to do by our government was unpopular and by most accounts unrealistic, however the level of dedication and sacrifice these men and women gave our nation is no less incredible than those members of the "greatest generation" in World War II

Gripping book, with a different twist about the early years of the Vietnam Conflict
2005-11-19 - George Hay's book was well writen, and well read by William Shatner, which was the perfect voice match for the reading!

To book covers the life of David Quinn, almost your anti-hero, and the trials and tribulations he goes through with two trips to Vietnam, initially before the US was offically there, and then a few years later when the US is there in earnest. Between those two trips he goes through some intense training, never thinking he would go back to Nam.

This book is spell binding and keeps you guessing through out the entire book. Well worth listening to Shatner read to you, or, using the software reading it to yourself!

Five stars and well worth the money!


E-Books: the Final Frontier
2004-11-10 - Here is a powerful little e-book and software package that boldly goes where no e-reader has gone before, with more gadgets than the Starship Enterprise. You can read text and/or listen to audio, both with easily adjustable controls, plus bookmarks, highlighters, search and print functions, all on one screen. Another bonus is Captain Kirk himself -- William Shatner -- who reads this action-packed, hard-core military thriller with his gritty, drill sergeant voice. The story itself is jammed with all the weaponry, fighting, intrigue and betrayal to please any war novel reader; the complex, highly-detailed plot will keep you guessing. The characters go through infantry, Special Ops, and SEAL-type mental and physical training; all manner of land, sea and aircraft -- even a submarine -- keep the mission moving. Like the Vietnam War itself, AGENT ORANGE includes elements of chaos, brutality and humanity. A unique addition to Vietnam-era literature -- and a great new way to experience it.