Review: Captain Bullen's War

Paul Ham (ed), Captain Bullen's War: The Vietnam War Diary of Captain John Bullen

On first thought, it may not seem that the Vietnam War memoirs of a captain commanding the Topographical Survey Troop, responsible for map production and the like, would make particularly compelling reading.

That was certainly my initial response when approaching Captain Bullen’s War: The Vietnam War Diary of Captain John Bullen, but the initial reluctance began to dissolve once I noted that the editor was none other than Paul Ham, author of the compelling Vietnam: The Australian War (Harper Collins 2008).

In his forward, Ham describes Bullen’s diaries as: “the perfect antidote to the hypocrisy, bombast and sheer callousness of many in politics, the armed forces and the peace movement during that benighted era.”

Any final lingering doubts were laid to rest by the conclusion of the first couple of pages. This, the reader quickly senses, is going to be good. Here is a thoughtful man with an intelligent and open mind, combined with a quick sense of humour and an ability to capture the absurdity and pathos of a complicated war.

Bullen’s diary covers from his trip to Vietnam via HMAS Sydney in January 1968 through to his eventual return home (again on the Sydney) in March 1969. The daily record of his life in between contains a wealth of detail about the war in that time — filling in as duty officer for the Task Force and travelling across the country, as well as his work with the Survey Troop, gave him ample opportunity to observe and record.

From the deadly successes of the SAS patrols, to the varying quality of the concerts provided for the troops, to the pranks played on new arrivals, and ongoing frustration with the VD level in his unit; all are reported frankly.

Bullen’s ongoing delight in helicopter flights, and his warm relationships with some of the civilians he encounters provide lighter moments, as does his telling of incidents from military life that would not be out of place in Catch 22. But he does not shy away from reporting the darker incidents and examples of inhumanity he encounters.

Bullen himself simply states of his time in Vietnam: “I’d done my best to brighten life for others, whether they wanted it brightened or not.”

This book attests to his success. A highly recommended account from a man well positioned to provide an alternative perspective to the usual writing about this war.

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