Tales of the Yellow Silk

ISBN: 0595236006

Author: Hart, Derek

Condition: New

Product Description Tales of the Yellow Silk is Derek Harts collection of short stories, covering Sergeant James Kendles brief tour of duty in Thailand from October 1974 to June 1975. The nave young sergeant considered his assignment as both a grand adventure and exotic travelogue. Instead, he found himself embroiled in a highly sensitive love affair and assigned to a dangerous covert military operation.So, sit and read about a different kind of war. A war that had no rules, no sides, no objectives, no honor, no results, no history, no monuments, no winners, and no official players. It was real to those who lived it, men and women. Daily life was not filled with the dread of being killed by the civilian population, as in Vietnam. Americans patrolled, set ambushes, spied on the Khmer Rouge or Pathet Lao, and saw a lot of Cambodia or Laos, then came back for a cold beer.Still, some of them didnt come back at all. Review Derek Hart has an enviably easy style, packing in a lot of adventure, military action, romance and local color in remarkably few pages. --myshelf.com/literary/03/talestheyellowsilk.htm From the Author One hot summer night, in Oklahoma City, many years ago, I was sitting on a streetside curb outside the Studebaker Bar.  It was a beautiful night, full of twinkling stars and a playful wind that spurred one's imagination.  I admit that the moment was right to evoke all sorts of images, most deeply hidden in the recesses of my soul.   Ann Iverson joined me at that curbside, a dear friend who innocently asked me what I was thinking.  Her timing, coupled with our shared trust, unlocked a room kept guarded by time and self-preservation.  So, I spun her a tale, a story of a young man, a beautiful Asian girl, yellow silk and war.   This little exchange led Ann to suggest I write the story down on paper, along with any others I could think of.  And she didn't let go of her suggestion either, but kept after me to sit down at my computer and write.  Over one long holiday weekend, I took the telephone off the hook, opened up several bottles of Jack Daniels, grilled many rare ribeye steaks, and sat hunched over my keyboard, creating a series of short stories, or vignettes.  Such was the birth of Tales of the Yellow Silk.  To Ann Iverson I say - Thank you.  She realized it was just something that needed to be written down.   Somewhere near Ta Sen, Cambodia, events forever changed six lives.  To those who survived that day, April Fool's Day carries with it things impossible to describe, yet deeply felt.  Even now, so many years since, the effect on them is incredible.  Tears?  Yes. Memories?  Indeed, both good and bad.  Regrets?  A question that has no answer, for all things experienced make us what we are.  Let's just say they wish things had turned out differently.  But then, they would be very different too and you probably would not be reading this novel.  So, perhaps when the characters of Team Delta ponder those times in their young lives, they will come away with the two images that haunt them most.  The first is of Death, how her intoxicating beauty and outstretched hand were not meant for all of them that day.  And the second image will be flowing yards of yellow silk.These tales aren't about courage, or bravery, or fighting for one's country.  This is about war and what it does.  All veterans everywhere, anytime, any place - are changed, in ways often unknown and unforeseen.  Still, this isn't about bitterness either, this is about love and loyalty. You should have seen them then.  They were young and proud and looked so handsome in uniform.  They laughed, loved, drank, ate and acted silly, all the while pretending to be wise and experienced and so adult.  They carried guns, but would much rather have been doing the things 19 & 20-year-olds are supposed to be doing. About the Author Derek Hart is the prolific author of action and adventure novels, known for their historical accuracy,