Title: Overrun: The Battle for Firebase 14
Author: Jeffrey H. Ahlin
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 9781524617677
Pages: 254
Genre: Fiction/Historical/General
Reviewed by: CC Thomas
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Author Jeffrey H. Ahlin takes his considerable experience with the subject of warfare and turns it into a mystery that will keep you turning the pages. Knowing the book and story is based on actual historical events turns what would normally be just a good read into a powerful and heart-tugging story. While readers typically might be able to separate from the fictional words they inhabit, the same isn’t true with this book. Overrun, by Jeffrey H. Ahlin, takes a question that haunts loved ones and family and follows it to its haunting conclusion—or, as haunting as can get with our current limitations in this modern world.
After a brief introduction in the present, Ahlin’s story then flashes back to a fictionalized account of his life in the armed services. What makes this story so unusual is his career choice. Ahlin was a dentist during his service career. While that might not seem very unusual, it is interesting to note the career path as he joins the service and gets sent to various locations around the world. Reading the account of a boy-next-door lent Overrun a very personal flavor.
This is the actual strength in the book—the connection with real people and real events. Ahlin’s narrative style makes the story so engrossing and very personal that it doesn’t really feel like a “war story”. You know the ones I mean—where the focus of the story is on the heroic feats of characters that are so hard to connect with. The usual stories are about men, and very occasionally women, who are brave and fearsome and physically superior that readers often just sit in awe and follow their adventures. Ahlin’s story is different. He’s a guy we can all connect with. He is, after all, a small-town dentist. Again, these little personal notes in the book make it all seem more real and down-to-earth. This is a story to connect with because Ahlin is just a regular guy thinking regular thoughts and doing regular things, until the very irregular occurs.
What follows explains the mystery set up in the introduction. But, if you like tight wrap- ups at the conclusion, then you’re probably in for a disappointment. Like most realistic war stories, especially those that take place in Vietnam, those just aren’t in the cards here. This story is loose, reckless and hopeless, while also being tightly controlled in the writing, organized with the plot, and hopeful with the ending.
For those of us who have lost a loved one during times of battle, especially if these individuals are MIA, this book takes on a greater significance. The questions, battles with guilt and dread, and screaming frustration at the lack of definitive answers are too real. Overrun: The Battle for Firebase 14 makes that all-important connection between a reader and the words on the page and adequately shows why that time period in our history is still so powerful. Overall, it’s a gentle reminder that the person next to you on the subway probably has an amazing story to tell. After all, Ahlin did.
