100 Days in Vietnam
A memoir of love, war, and survival
A father & son memoir. A deployment at the very end of the Vietnam War by an Army pilot trying to do good in a bad situation. A story of tragic loss, love, and survival. An unlikely quest 40 years later for the Purple Heart.
What People are saying
“100 Days in Vietnam is a story of selflessness and self sacrifice, qualities that have been and remain essential to the strength of our nation and our Army. Joe Tallon’s story is important because it will help readers appreciate the importance of the warrior ethos, the covenant between fellow soldiers…”
H.R. McMaster, author of Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies That Led to Vietnam (1997) and most recently Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World (Sept 2020)
“Father and son army veterans, Joseph and Matthew, sing a soulful duet of remembrance and revelation in this evocative narrative of love and war, suffering and struggle, resilience and healing. 100 Days in Vietnam, a cross-generational memoir, offers us rare insights into the deep bonds of friendship, the ravages and gifts of survival, and the complex meanings of a true patriotism.”
Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is the Emily Hargroves Fisher Research Professor of Education, Harvard University, and the author of Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer and Exit: The Endings That Set Us Free among other books.
“For all of us coming of age in the class of 1969, the Vietnam War was always looming. After receiving a draft notice post-graduation, Joe Tallon scratched and clawed his way through Army training, ultimately finding himself in Vietnam by 1972. His resiliency and strength to overcome shine through in this poignant survival story told in tandem by father and son.”
Mike Krzyzewski, Head Coach, Duke University, West Point Class of ‘69
“Joseph Tallon’s story, told through his wartime letters, recollections, and the words of his son, is a moving account of an American family’s experience with war, loss, and remembrance. 100 Days in Vietnam offers readers both a rare window on the final days of our painful national odyssey in Vietnam and a remarkable record of an individual’s determined quest to honor a fallen comrade.”
Ken Burns, Filmmaker and Director of The Vietnam War, The Civil War, and many other films
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Media Gallery
See more images and artifacts from before, during and after the war.
About The Authors
Matthew A. Tallon (Son) and Joseph F. Tallon (Father) are both former Army officers and both former high school history teachers with master’s degrees in education. They are both products of the South Carolina Lowcountry and both avid fishermen. This journey to tell this story together has been one of their most difficult assignments. Many in the Tallon family have known war over the past century, but in crafting this unique story, Matt and Joe had to pull back scabs, interrogate memories, and dig deep into a set of experiences in 1972 that shaped the remainder of Joe’s life. Together, they combed through the memories as well as the artifacts that remained from that tumultuous time. They also embarked on a quest together some 35+ years later to gain some small recognition for the sacrifices made in Vietnam and in the recovery for years afterward. With the support and love of their spouses, the 100 Days in Vietnam narrative provides another unique installment in the literature of the Vietnam War.