Book Review: Stalking The Dragon

05 May 2008

Could the U.S. have captured Ho Chi Minh, North Vietnam’s leader, and thereby changed the course of the Vietnam War? That is the central premise behind Kregg Jorgenson’s lighthearted novel, Stalking the Dragon.

Jorgenson, a Long Range Patrol team member in Vietnam and author of MIA Rescue, has combined his military experience and imagination in the production of this amusing Special Forces book.

The story centers on Michael Butler, a young Army journalist who is quietly serving out his one year Tour of Duty in South East Asia. However, when he is caught trading in the Saigon black market he is faced with spending the next few years in a military prison. Desperate to avoid incarceration, he accepts the offer of a mission of which he is told next to nothing, other than the charges against him will be dropped.

As his classified adventure into North Vietnam unfolds Jorgenson provides the reader with a number of laugh out loud moments, especially during the latter half of the mission when Butler gets separated from his SF team and has to join forces with a French Legionnaire. The Frenchman, in a similar position to that of a Japanese soldier still guarding his remote Pacific island well after the end of World War II, is still faithfully fighting the Viet Minh. Fortunately for Butler he proves to be a useful ally.

Stalking the Dragon is a good fun and an easy read. However there are a number of typographical errors and double printing of words. This is not the only book that we have noticed recently to suffer from this problem and we hope publishers take note and up their standards.

Copyright © VietnamGear.com. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for internal use within VietnamGear.com. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable