Paco's Story

By: Larry Heinemann

Narrated by: Richard Ferrone

The only man in Alpha Company to survive a cataclysmic Vietcong attack, Paco Sullivan is sent back to the U.S. with his legs full of pins, daily rations of Librium and Valium, and no sense of what to do next. One evening, he limps off a bus and into the small town of Boone, determined to find a real life; but no matter how hard he works, nothing muffles the anguish in his mind and body.

Brilliantly and vividly written, Paco's Story plunges the reader into the violence and casual cruelty of the Vietnam War, and the ghostly aftermath that often dealt the harshest blows.

©1986 Larry Heinemann (P)2006 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"Intense, vividly written...a very frightening, yet wondrously rendered tale of violent extremes of human behavior. A strongly emotional reading experience, it is highly recommended for collections of serious contemporary fiction." (Library Journal)

Boring.

By all means, if you have six hours to waste…. But it’s neither a good Vietnamese war story or a sympathetic
Picture of a soldier scarred by the war.

Wanted it to end

Promotional description set expectations that were never met. Is this a story about Paco, Vietnam, the narrator, or a small town in the 60's? Couldn't tell. Narrator went overboard describing situations, settings, and relationships that added little to plot.