Di Di Mau: A True Story About Tigers, Rock Apes, the Jungle, and War

A Distinctly Different Voice From The War!

My older brother served two tours as a Huey Cobra pilot in Vietnam. Iââ?¬â?¢ve read many memoirs over the years, most likely in a vain attempt to understand what he endured, risking life and limb daily, witnessing the worst forms of inhumanity, and knowing that his marriage was deteriorating back in the States. But Iââ?¬â?¢ve never read a Vetââ?¬â?¢s story quite like this one. In ââ?¬Å"Di Di Mauââ?¬Â? by Darren Walton with Michael J. Coffino, Walton takes us into the dark triple canopy of the South Vietnamese rain forest. It was not only home to elephants, tigers, rock apes, and leeches. It was home to the Viet Cong. While beautiful, it was deadly in countless ways.

Darren Walton served as a reconnaissance Marine stationed at Camp Reasoner, southwest of Da Nang in South Vietnam. Their mission involved humping through the jungle, looking for signs of movement by the enemy. Their patrols consisted of only seven men who had to carry the food, water, supplies, and ammo they would need for 7 days in the field. Their patrols were not designed to engage the enemy, simply observe them. But engagements happened frequently. One of the seven Marines in their squad would be a corpsman on loan from the Navy to act as medic for the men. Although the corpsman carried a weapon, his job was not to fight, but to save lives. Welcome to Vietnam, 1970.

While most memoirs from this era consist of memories of firefights, disagreements with the Brass, and a few drunken stories to break the tension, Walton presents his readers a very different view. His perception of this time, written roughly fifty years later, shows his commitment to and appreciation of those he served with. As he introduces us to the various helicopter crews, corpsmen, radio operators, patrol leaders, artillery, nurses, various support personnel, and the decision-makers, he enlightens us as to what each of their duties involved. He shows his readers how all these people worked together when needed, whether it was to provide artillery support or to bring down a hail of firepower while the recon unit was hauled to safety- sometimes dangling from a system of ropes (known as a Swiss Ladder) dangling underneath the helicopter. Whether these men were friends, strangers, or frenemies didn�t matter. They always showed up. The author�s positive attitude toward those he served with is a fresh breath of positivity on each page.

While Waltonââ?¬â?¢s goal isnââ?¬â?¢t to give you more war stories, he does share several ââ?¬Å"adventuresââ?¬Â? he and his recon unit shared. For me, the most fascinating of these were the animal encounters. Particularly the Rock Apes. At least, thatââ?¬â?¢s how the military referred to them. They earned that name due to their aggressive natures and their propensity to throw rocks at anyone in uniform. While the author indicates their aim wasnââ?¬â?¢t very spectacular, heââ?¬â?¢s quick to say that their brute strength and the force of their vicious throws more than made up for their lack of directional coordination. The author was kind enough to include a picture of one such beast in his book. Iââ?¬â?¢d rather meet a tiger.

There is something you can send in your next package, if you will. 3 lg cans of Rock Ape food, we�re getting low. Some cat food for the tigers, peanuts for the elephants, and some blood for the leeches, I�m running out. And maybe a stick of salami for the kid.

Darren Walton�s perspective on his time In Country is so unique and immensely positive toward service members that I could not get enough. The fact he chose not to tell others afterward that he had served in Vietnam is both fascinating and understandable.

I wanted people to deal with me based on who I knew I was, not through an unforgiving lens that abhorred the military. I respected the anti-war point of view. I just didn�t want people to flog me with it. And so, wherever I gathered socially, I repressed my military background, my version of don�t ask, don�t tell.

It was a very different time with a society that no longer saw our military as brave, heroic young people. Service members were not respected or appreciated by a very vocal percentage of the country. I love how it came to be that he finally opened up and let it be known, but I�m not going to spoil the story on that one.

There are a thousand more points to make about this dynamic read. It is witty, gritty, haunting, and occasionally heartbreaking. Yet it maintains a largely positive attitude by this man who has lived half a century beyond his time in the jungle and has been able to garner a healthy perspective of this time. I encourage anyone who enjoys memoirs, readers who enjoy historic accounts, and those who appreciate the perspective of one who has survived hell on earth to pick up ââ?¬Å"Di Di Mauââ?¬Â? by Darren Walton. It is a story that will remain with you long after the book is closed.