December 29, 2012: AT EASE!

A compelling memoir, and an action-packed, teen angst and alienation, urban-fantasy novel are the books discussed as AT EASE Dwight Zimmerman rings out the old year. It’s a surprising author mix, but tune in and you’ll see why we did it.Stand To—A Journey to Manhood—E. Franklin Evans had watched every war movie John Wayne ever made, sometimes several times over. When the “Duke” led his men, war was exciting and heroes were made as they ruggedly fought and predictably won each battle. But when Evans’ high school friend and real-life hero Glenn was killed in Vietnam, war became real and personal. In December 1966, at age nineteen he enlisted in the U.S. Army and soon found himself entrenched in a treacherous war. In his journey from adolescence to adulthood, he learned not only to survive but also to muster the bravery to lead others in combat. It took Evans more than thirty-five years to begin to heal the physical and emotional wounds that kept him from sharing his intensely personal story. From his depiction of the picturesque aerial view of Cam Rahn Bay to that of the barbed wire, metal planking, and squat huts housing weapons, Evans’ Stand To provides a vividly detailed glimpse into what it was like to become a man on the battlefields of Vietnam.BLOOD FEUD—If you have a teenage daughter or granddaughter, or know someone who does, here’s a book worth paying attention to. Sixteen-year-old Goth girl Pandora Zwieback has a major problem: she’s discovered she’s the only one who suddenly sees her hometown of New York City for what it really is—the stomping ground for every monster and ghoul out to raise a little hell (literally!). As Pan struggles with a huge one-of-a-kind identity crisis (and all sorts of alienation issues with her peers), she finds herself caught in the middle of a war between rival vampire clans from Japan, London, and Eastern Europe all after the same prize: a mysterious crate recently delivered to the horror-themed museum owned by her father. Author Steven A. Roman has crafted a fast-paced, mayhem-filled, angst and alienation ridden, critically acclaimed adventure that is also a lot of fun, even if it does at times get kinda messy.