title: There's a Man with a Gun Over There
author: R.M. Ryan
description: "In this autobiographical novel, Rick Ryan, a young American desperate to avoid Vietnam in 1968, is drafted but manages to maneuver his way into a German language class, where he is promised a post as a translator by an army recruiter. The book's message is clear and repeated throughout the book: the Army is not a game, and no matter what you tell yourself to get through it, you are still a trained killer. Ryan offers a side to Vietnam that most people don't see. He drives his points home about the dangers of the military and how it affects people." --<b>Publishers Weekly</b><br /><br />"This is not a comic or satirical war novel, like <i>M*A*S*H</i>, nor one that brings the horrors of combat to full view, like James Jones' <i>The Thin Red Line</i>; rather, it is a relatively slow paced, introspective tale...It's a beautifully written, elegant, and often powerful tale about a young man whose life was drastically altered by events over which he had no control. For readers who savor ruminative literary fiction set during wartime, this is sure to satisfy."<b>--Booklist</b><br /><br />"Intriguing" --<b>Kirkus</b><br /><br />"<i>There's a Man with a Gun over There</i> is a novel rich with references to music and culture of the '60s, and powerful with relevance to today. Based on author R. M. Ryan's military experience during the Vietnam era, it's not so much a tale of the Vietnam War or Vietnam's ills, but rather one of beating the military system and being beaten by it just the same. "Over there" might be Europe or Asia or beyond, but the price of that gun is surely still paid "over here."<br /><br />Ryan writes with a uniquely compelling style. Short scenes evolve into each other through a natural progression of thoughts, while high school teachers, war criminals, betrayed wives and more flit through the author's mind. The well-drawn intersecting timelines never confuse but work seamlessly together, weaving a tale of life's rich weave torn apart.<br /><br />Next time I see the Vietnam memorial, those names unknown will have faces and histories, thanks to a man who wasn't over there. And frozen tomato sauce will never seem the same. This book is a must-read revelation of a generation, growing more relevant with each newscast to today. And the oldest business in the world isn't prostitution after all." --<b>Sheila's Reviews</b>
zlib_text: ## Chapter One
  
  Ryan Cawdor stood out of the line of fire, his back pressed against a mud-
  brick wall. The ground was partially frozen underfoot, the early morning sky
  streaked with scudding low clouds. Gusts of wind shrieked through the
  ramshackle hilltop maze of Redbone ville, drowning out the screams of the
  dying.
  
  A makeshift barricade of rocks and dirt and tree limbs stood less than one
  hundred feet from Ryan’s position. It blocked the entrance to a narrow path
  that was the ville’s only remaining escape route. The blue-less sights and
  muzzles of three AK-47s poked out through firing ports, gaps in the layers of
  piled debris.
  
  From the opposite direction, near the center of the pesthole ville, a frantic
  flurry of gunshots rang out. With black powder revolvers and remade single-
  shot 12-gauges, Redbone’s trapped residents fought off a superior force. The
  resistance was answered by short, efficient bursts of heavy-caliber autofire.
  
  Time was running out, for all concerned.
  
  Ryan step