Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: Like thousands of women, Diane Evans served as a nurse during the Vietnam War, patching up wounded straight from the front lines and often being the last face a soldier saw before he died. In 1983, 14 years after returning home, Diane found a new mission, making sure she and the women volunteers she served with received the same recognition as the men. While doing so, she was forced to do the one thing she had been avoiding, talk about what she had experienced.  Review: One of my mom's friends had given her a copy of Healing Wounds and it looked intriguing enough for me to ask her for an opportunity to read it when she was finished. I managed to read through the book in a fairly quick amount of time and can only describe it as inspirational. One thing I learned when studying history is women's accomplishments are often diminished or even forgotten when the end result favors men. This is especially true when it comes to the history of war, when women are barely ment...

Synopsis : This non-fiction book tells the story about the United States' involvement in Vietnam, with an emphasis on "The Year of the Hawk," 1965. The book includes explanations about the country's history and political and military decisions that resulted in one of America's biggest military failures. Review: I hadn't planned on checking out a non-fiction book when I was at the library last week. However, I saw this book in the "new book" section and, after glancing at it, decided to give it a try. Overall, I have to say I enjoyed reading it. I think one of the hardest things about writing about a conflict like Vietnam is finding a way to balance the truth about what happened with the desire not to insult the military personnel who fought and/or died in that conflict. Being the son of a Vietnam veteran, I was concerned the book wouldn't be able to find that balance but, after reading it, I think the author did just that. I personally enjoyed h...