Order your copy today!
The book launched on January 12, 2019 - the 50th anniversary of the day Mike shipped off to Vietnam. Mike's story was welcomed with open arms by friends, family, and the community. We could not be more grateful.
Join us in celebrating an important viewpoint in the Vietnam era - the everyday solider. Order your copy today!
A Soldier's Memoir
117 Days is the firsthand account of nineteen year old draftee, PFC Mike Hardy, as he fought on the front lines of Vietnam in 1969. Decades after the war, Mike sat down with his eldest daughter, Marie, and recorded those experiences. This book is the written memory of the lifetime that occurred during the 117 days Mike served in Vietnam.
Arriving at the Peak of the War
The largest sustained military campaign against the US and South Vietnam was the 1968 Tet Offensive. The event sent shockwaves through the public, leading to shake-ups on the U.S. political front and a full reassessment of the war. The US government prepared for the possibility of a repeat attack over the next Tet holiday. Mike arrived completely unaware he was a part of the ramp up in troops. He had only weeks in country before the second Tet Offensive.
The Past Catching Up
Growing up in a blended family, Mike remembers meeting his father only four times. Mike's first memory was at five years old when his father took him to a movie. Mike saw him once more as a teen, just long enough to snap a family picture. The next time would be in Vietnam, which would change the course of Mike's involvement in the war. They wouldn't speak again until years later, and for the last time, at a funeral.