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Rocko Bonaparte
Rocko Bonaparte
Writing & Literature I
4-27-01
The works of Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, and Francis Scott Fitzgerald are the meter sticks from which great American Literature is written. However, one must keep their eyes peeled for occasional alternative. Some works do not fall into the contemporary mold and require special consideration. For these reasons, I have chosen to do my book report on a 1986 edition of an Army Correspondence Course Program. The title of this work is Small Arms Defense Against Air Attack.  Authored by Staff Sergeant Brian Fausey, it is a cross of artistic talent with military tactics. The theme centers around being able to defend one's unit against a Soviet aerial attack, whether by jet or helicopter.

The work begins with a startling introduction. Previous US Army actions were conducted in a world where air power was always on their side. This was a time known as total air supremacy.  Unfortunately, the rise of large competing air forces like that of the Soviet Union means this great era is no more. The story within the manual entails how the US Army adapted to this change.

Helicopters and jets make up the bulk of antagonists in the plot. The Soviet Union, of course, is the main arch-nemesis. The protagonists are portrayed as a rag-tag US infantry unit. This kind of depiction of the Army has become popular through movies about World War II. There is no central hero to the story; everything is a group effort. There are some noteworthy characters, however. Jeff, a middle-of-the-road lieutenant finds himself firing at airplanes from a variety of different positions. Randy and Andy are two intimate privates who share an M60 machinegun. In lesson one/learning event five, their affections for each other are revealed to the reader by their reactions to the undue stress of Soviet air superiority. A picture is worth a thousand words, and one was included within the text:



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