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Reviewed by:
  • I Pledge Allegiance
  • Elizabeth Bush
Lynch, Chris . I Pledge Allegiance. Scholastic, 2011. 184p. (Vietnam) ISBN 978-0-545-27029-8 $16.99 R Gr. 6-9.

For years and years, Rudi, Ivan, Beck, and Morris (the narrator) have been thick as thieves, their friendship often bound in the kind of pledges kids make to assure they'll always have each other's backs. As high school draws to a close and the reality of the Vietnam draft closes in, the guys swear that if one goes to war, they all go to war. Rudi, the eldest, is called up and joins the Marines, and the others fall in line. Ivan, always the most belligerent, can hardly wait to get to the Army recruiter; Beck, the brainiac, withstands his family's disappointment as he abandons his college plans and joins the Air Force; Morris chooses the Navy. Nobody departs with a very clear sense of the military mission in southeast Asia, but Morris has his own personal goal—to protect his buddies, even from afar: "As long as I am here off this coast, firing on my friends' enemies, we are all going to get through this and come home okay. I believe that." However, as the four exchange letters and the occasional phone call, it becomes clear that the horrors each has experienced have altered their characters in ways they never could have predicted. Rudi, always the slow-witted misfit, loves the clarity of commands and takes to killing like a duck to water. Ivan becomes dour and withdrawn, Beck caustic and sardonic, and Morris reluctant to admit that he can't really hold the band together. With a fine balance of thoughtfulness and gritty action, this initial series entry should readily attract a host of loyal fans. [End Page 214]

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