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  • Eye of the Tiger

  • Memoir of a United States Marine, Third Force Recon Company, Vietnam
  • By: John Edmund Delezen
  • Narrated by: David Marantz
  • Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (72 ratings)

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Eye of the Tiger cover art

Eye of the Tiger

By: John Edmund Delezen
Narrated by: David Marantz
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Publisher's Summary

“We live together under the thick canopy, each searching for the other; the same leeches and mosquitoes that feed on our blood feed on his blood.” 

John Edmund Delezen felt a kinship with the people he was instructed to kill in Vietnam; they were all at the mercy of the land. His memoir begins when he enlisted in the Marine Corps and was sent to Vietnam in March of 1967. He volunteered for the Third Force Recon Company, whose job it was to locate and infiltrate enemy lines undetected and map their locations and learn details of their status. The duty was often painful both physically and mentally. He was stricken with malaria in November of 1967, wounded by a grenade in February of 1968, and hit by a bullet later that summer. He remained in Vietnam until December, 1968. 

Delezen writes of Vietnam as a man humbled by a mysterious country and horrified by acts of brutality. The land was his enemy as much as the Vietnamese soldiers. He vividly describes the three-canopy jungle with birds and monkeys overhead that could be heard but not seen, venomous snakes hiding in trees and relentless bugs that fed on men. He recalls stumbling onto a pit of rotting Vietnamese bodies left behind by American forces, and days when fierce hunger made a bag of plasma seem like an enticing meal. He writes of his fallen comrades and the images of war that still pervade his dreams.

©2015 John Edmund Delezen (P)2019 Blackstone Publishing

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Excellent

Compelling personal account of one man's war in Vietnam. Although short, manages to transport the listener to the environment with the author.

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A vivid and sincere account of combat life

The language and style is bold and from the heart. It is an account of combat experience that I am thankful to have read. I barely paused from beginning to end.

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Wonderful book

Excellent. A gifted writer with an incredible reflection of what was a life changing experience .
The narrator was also fantastic

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Semper Fi

Fascinating story from the Vietnam conflict. Those recon marines had huge cojones… a riveting recollection.

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5 Stars

Amazing! It’s an enthralling account that is only boosted by David Marantz’s unique reading style. Highly recommended.

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Worth the listen

There is a lot of detail here and this is well worth the listen. pick it up!

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Captivating

With every word of this encounter I wonder how anyone can dwell on the far left of the political spectrum and how anyone who fought in Vietnam hasn’t eradicated all of the scum that titled them baby killers.

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Human spirit and strength

great audio book. amazing what these blokes went through. I have nothing but admiration and respect.
I did find the narrator to be rather mono tone and flat. would have been better with a more in the moment reading style or more inflection or intonation during the story.

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great listen

a really well written and articulate book. The author did a great job of conveying the feelings he had.

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Great book

The oratory is ‘deadpan’ whereas the writing is very descriptive; together they take the listener to the jungles of Vietnam and the life of a Recon Marine.
I enjoyed my listening experience

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