Fields of Fire (novel)
{{Short description|1978 novel by James "Jim" Webb}}
{{other uses|Field of fire (disambiguation)}}
{{more citations needed|date=July 2015}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox book
| name = Fields of Fire
| image = Fields of Fire (novel).jpg
| caption = First edition
| author = James Webb
| country = United States
| language = English
| series =
| subject = Vietnam War, United States Marine Corps
| genre = Historical fiction
| publisher = Prentice Hall
| pub_date = 1978
| media_type = Paperback
| pages = 496 pages
| isbn = 0-553-58385-9
| congress= CPB Box no. 1963 vol. 23
| oclc= 47918691
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}
Fields of Fire is a novel by U.S. Senator Jim Webb, first published in 1978. It is a work of fiction which depicts a platoon of Marines serving in the Vietnam War.
Content
The novel is told mainly from the viewpoints of three Marines: 2nd Lt. Robert E. Lee Hodges, who comes from a long line of soldiers; "Snake" (no full name given), a squad leader in Hodges' platoon, a tough kid from the streets; and "Senator" (Will Goodrich), an impressionable and sensitive Harvard student who volunteers for service. The major themes are centered on loyalty, leadership, and the brutalizing effects on people in a time of war.
Written only three years after the last American troops withdrew from Vietnam,{{Cite web|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/last-united-states-combat-troops-withdraw-from-vietnam-this-day-in-1973/3786745.html|title=This Day in History: Last US Combat Troops Withdraw from Vietnam|website=VOA|date=29 March 2017 }} and despite being written by a man who loved the military and hated the antiwar movement, Fields of Fire points out the flawed logic of the Vietnam War through its hero, Lieutenant Hodges.{{Cite news|last=Cushman|first=John H.|date=1988-02-28|title=JAMES WEBB'S NEW 'FIELDS OF FIRE' (Published 1988)|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/02/28/magazine/james-webb-s-new-fields-of-fire.html|access-date=2021-02-14|issn=0362-4331}}
Reception
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References
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Category:Novels set during the Vietnam War
Category:Novels about the United States Marine Corps
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