The Hardest Year

This memoir is based on handwritten letters, cards, and newspaper clippings sent between Carole and Bill Wagener from September 1968 to August 1969. The vernacular is accurate to that time using words that may no longer be politically correct. The letters, based on actual events, may have been compressed. Please note there was a time lapse between these letters due to a lag in the mail. Some names and identifying characteristics were changed to protect privacy, and some dialogue was recreated. The remainder of the book is based on Carole and Bill's memories to the best of their recollection over time. Because this is a war story, some chapters are very graphic and may not suit those with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other trauma-related disorders. In addition, the book contains some offensive language and sexual references. Finally, there are several military terms, and various German, French, and Vietnamese phrases mentioned in this book. These terms are defined in the Glossary. Endnotes help the reader become more familiar with the history of the Vietnam War era. The Hardest Year is not entirely composed of letters as Carole has taken some of her letters and turned them into narrative or dialogue. She seamlessly weaves her stories in with the letters to create a flow in the narrative, keeping the reader engaged through the final Epilogue which takes place in 2007 at anti-Iraq war demonstration.