Book Notes from Chapter 17

• Understand how Richie feels about returning to the "Real World".

  • What does he have thoughts of?
    
  • What makes him go back to the battle?
• Simpson's departure
  
• The new Sergeant Dongan
  • What is his personality like?
    
  • Be sure to understand why the other men believe that he is racist!
    • How do the other men react to that?
      
    • Do you believe that he truly is doing that?
• Father Santora's visit
  • Was he effective?
    
  • Why did he seem out-of-touch with the reality of Vietnam?
• How are the men dealing with loss differently? For example, how is Johnson dealing with Brew's death?
  
• General Westmoreland's comment to "maximize destruction of the enemy"--why is that so disturbing to Richie?
  
• Why is Pee Wee and Richie's friendship so strong?
  
• The last image in the chapter is striking. Why?
  • Be able to talk about what happened
    
  • Be able to understand why it happened and how that would effect the men, especially Peewee.