Robert Sasse

Moon of Hardship Robert Sasse

George Dugan, a traumatized Vietnam veteran, finds some peace of mind by adopting Lakota Sioux spirituality. After moving with his girlfriend to a large ranch in western Nebraska hoping to live a quiet life in a tipi, local sheriff Jim Hughes and his brother-in-law rancher, L. J. Richardson, become determined to drive Dugan from the ranch. An accident leads to the shooting death of George's girlfriend, and as Indian friends move to the ranch, there are more altercations between the law and the rancher. Dugan is faced with a conflict between a pledge he made to never harm another human and a maddening desire for retribution of the kind he had once meted out in the jungles of Vietnam, which ultimately cost him his life. The book contains some Lakota language and many descriptions of ceremonies and culture. Many novels use Vietnam experience to shade a character but few books have been written about the legion of veterans whose entire lives are still defined by their combat experience. With the threat of more questionable wars looming, there is renewed interest in the gruesome aftermath of combat and veterans forever traumatized by past wars, especially Vietnam. This novel provides an accurate portrait what that aftermath can look like.