Good Vietnam War novels are still being written, even if those who experienced the war are getting a bit long in the tooth, and Robert Dugoni's “The World Played Chess” (2021) is one of them. As the title suggests, it's a complicated world out there, in peace as much as in war.

Dugoni tells three related stories at the same time. One is the journal kept by William while a marine serving in Vietnam. Other marines die around him, and later his guilt from what he did in the war is compounded by the fact that he survived and they didn't.

After the war, he works with Vincent, a recent high school graduate, on a construction crew. Vincent makes his own mistakes, faces his own dangers and takes his own risks even without a war. Meanwhile William shares a little about his Vietnam experiences.

In the third story, Vincent is a middle-aged adult with children of his own when he receives William's journal in the mail. Meanwhile, Vincent's son. Beau, is also just out of high school and struggling into manhood in a dangerous, complicated world.

With parallel stories of boys becoming men and facing many of same struggles, Dugoni weaves a compelling story about growing into manhood. This novel was recommended to me by a woman, so obviously its message is not for men alone. ( )

In 1979 Vincent Bianca has just graduated from high school. His only desire is to get some beer money and enjoy his final summer with his friends before college. He lands a job as a laborer on a construction crew. Working alongside two Vietnam War vets, one suffering from PTSD, Vincent gets the education of a lifetime. Noam forty years later, with his own so. Leaving for college, the lessons of that summer-Vincent’s last taste of innocence and first taste of real-life dramatically unfold. ( )

The World Played Chess. Robert Dugoni. 2021. This coming of age novel is excellent. It is told in back flashes. Vince gets a package from William, a Vietnam vet he had worked with the summer before he went to college. The package contains a journal William kept when he was in Vietnam. Vince goes from the present day when is son is getting ready to go to college, back to the summer he worked with William and the war journal. This is one of the most descriptive books I have read about Vietnam. I know there are a lot of nonfiction accounts of daily life of the American soldier in Vietnam that I haven’t read. I found this account heartbreaking and real. It was not easy to read. What was equally effective was the way Vince showed how he and his son matured and strengthened their moral compasses. I think it would be an excellent book for young men to read. ( )

What a poignant book. The story is told from 3 points of view, from different times, yet all connected.

Vincent is 18 in 1976, just graduated High School. He gets a job doing construction, thinking it will be a good way to make money. He works with William, a Vietnam veteran, who clearly, though it wasn't recognized then, has PTSD. Vincent does some serious growing up that summer, as William shares some of his experiences, and Vincent see the parallels in his own life.

William, in 1968, joined the Marines and was sent to Vietnam. While there he kept a journal of his 13 months there, very eye opening.

In 2016, Vincent's son, Beau, turns 18, and has just graduated high school. In the mail, Vincent receives the journal that William wrote while in Vietnam. William thanks Vincent for being there back in 1976 and listening to him. William remembered how Vincent had wanted to be a writer. He sent the journal for him to read and do what he wants with it.

The story unfolds as each alternates telling their story reinforcing the connection between them; Growing up, entering manhood, finding your way. Very, very moving. ( )

It seems that no matter what Robert Dugoni writes, he nails it. His mysteries and spy thrillers are top-notch. His mainstream [b:The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell|35995489|The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell|Robert Dugoni|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1510251600l/35995489._SY75_.jpg|57558683] was uncomfortably compelling. Now his historical look at the Viet Nam war and its impact on various lives hits the same sweet spot of character and story and setting.

For someone that missed the draft by only a year or two and went to high school in California, it also feels personal. I wasn't a jock, didn't go to a private school, didn't work construction and wasn't a soldier (or marine). But I was a contemporary to all that in time and space and felt all the feels that Mr. Dugoni put into this work. Much of this ground has been covered before. But Dugoni gives it a fresh perspective. I am still thinking about the three men and how their lives intersect in this book.

Disclosure: Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing a free copy of this book in return for my honest review. ( )