l. john lawrence

Creating a most unlikely hero, the army assigned Albert Costas, the youngest and lowest-ranking soldier in the Vietnam War, to run errands and do other menial tasks for the headquarters staff in Saigon. The transition to the real world, coming of age - difficult for any young man - becomes for Albert the unreal world of Army life in a combat zone. He sees the parade of bizarre and irrational behavior of men under stress and struggles to maintain his own grasp on reality.

Unknown decision makers hiding behind the code name Wigwam, add to the confusion, where all is upsidedown, inside out, and backwards. Sacrifice and achievement become twisted with tragic results.