Book excerpt: In 1971, the world was introduced to Brandywines War, a brilliant satiric novel of army life in the midst of battle. That book was peopled by a kooky collection of characters who managed to turn the Vietnam War into a stage for bizarre events. Now a generation later, the author of that novel revisits the picaresque protagonist, Chief Warrant Officer W. W. Brandywine who is Back in Country to fulfill an involuntary six-month extension. Brandywines War: Back in Country is a sequel to the highly-acclaimed, bestselling Brandywines War, regarded as the best iconoclastic novel to come from the Vietnam era. No matter how you felt about that tumultuous time in American history, this new book will touch your emotions. You will laugh out loud; you will weep silently, but in the end, you will be proud.