Review: Forward into Hell by Vince Bramley

5 stars for Forward into Hell by Vince Bramley.

Forward Into Hell is a candid first person account written by Vince Bramley, an English soldier from the ranks, one who cheats death not once, not twice but more than thrice during the Falklands War in 1982, and lives to tell this gripping and unnerving account of the bloody battle fought in Mount Langdon.

It has been donkey years since I read a Non-Fiction. If my memory serves me right, my last read Non-Fiction was in 2002, “It’s Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life” written by the now infamous Lance Armstrong long before he has fallen from grace with the doping revelations. As much as Armstrong’s book is inspirational (at that time), I did not manage to complete my reading as the writing and thought process are all jumbled up and too disorganised for my liking. It is understandably so since most writers of Non-Fiction books are not cut out to be author material but merely present their life stories based on facts and information as and when they see fit. Thus, I am deeply impressed by Vince Bramley in his well-structured and methodical writing of his true-life account of the Falklands war.

Vince Bramley mentions in his foreword that he has always been saddened when history dies with a soldier. I agree with him in a way. My maternal grandfather survived both World War I and II to live to a ripe old age of 94 before crossing over to the rainbow beyond in 2005. Though he had seen and lived through the worst of World War II during the invasion, he had never shared with me any part whatsoever of those days of darkness he was subjected to. It is with great regret as I look back on how much is lost forever with his passing.

Therefore, I feel it worthy to document down the events and experiences of one who has survived war and its aftermath. A re-telling of the war account may serve several purposes: ease the narrator’s pent-up burden, provide the well-deserved recognition for the troops especially those unheeded junior ranks who form the backbone of the war machine with their close range combat, and function as an invaluable lesson to be learnt by future generations.

In this book, readers gain access to insights based on the first-hand experiences, thoughts and feelings of Bramley, an ordinary soldier: how the war affects and changes him and his attitude to life, what dominates the forefront of his mind in battle and why faces of his dead comrades continue to haunt him long after the war. One that strikes a chord with me is Bramley’s indifferent depiction of the nothingness he undergoes after having killed (Had we killed? We must have) using a spray of machine-gun bullets in the cover of the night. Because he has neither seen the enemies nor killed at the end of a bayonet, it feels surreal to Bramley that the enemies even exist at all. This mentality is somewhat similar to the thinking that death will not happen to one’s own self but only to other persons. In truth, the reality of facing death head-on and having to kill is one such petrifying belief that most, if not all soldiers simply switch off from the sights, choosing to go numb over going nuts.

In a battle between life-and-death, decisions are made on the spot, questions asked afterwards. Indeed, the rights and wrongs of war can never be argued from the comfy chair, and there are always causes and reasons to contend with. It is clear that while Bramley disagrees with war, he will not hesitate to fight again for his country and its beliefs. Perhaps that is something only soldiers, especially those on the frontline can fully understand and identify with.

Publisher: John Blake; Reprint edition
Publication date: 6 Jun 2011

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Written by a soldier from the ranks, this book is a candid account of the bloody battle for Mount Langdon during the Falklands War. Vincent Bramley describes in shocking detail the 12 hours of brutal man-to-man combat that it took before the Third Battalion Parachute Regiment were able to take the mountain from the Argentine forces. He exposes the effects that the fear of dying and the reality of killing have on the ordinary soldier during the heat of battle. He tells how some men went AWOL, how others faced their fears and confronted the enemy, and how some went on a vicious killing spree. Bramley's underlying message is that war should be avoided at all costs. But, while wars continue to be fought around the globe, the grim reality of life on the frontline will be fully comprehended by all who read this book.

*Blurb from Goodreads*

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