A Private War: An American Code Officer in the Belgian Congo

Silver & Blue
"Through the use of narrative, passages from his journal and letters from his family, Laxalt presents a vivid picture of a young man at a crossroads, where ultimate reward is found not in the netherworld of clandestine diplomatic machinations, but in the knowledge that familiarity and family are the things this preeminent Nevada writer holds nearest and dearest to his heart."


Book Description
When World War II began, esteemed Nevada writer Robert Laxalt was an undergraduate at California's University of Santa Clara. Like most men of his generation, he was eager to serve his country in its armed forces. However, a childhood illness that left him with a heart murmur disqualified him for military service, despite excellent health and an impressive athletic record. Frustrated in his attempts to enlist and shunned by his Nevada neighbors as a draft dodger, Laxalt in desperation used his family's political connections to get himself appointed as a code officer at the U.S. legation in the Belgian Congo. This vivid memoir recalls Laxalt's service in a remote jungle outpost where a secret and ominous war was being fought for control of the world's future. Deep in the Congo lay a mine that produced a little-known mineral called uranium, and for reasons that no one then understood, the Allies and the Germans were struggling ferociously to control the mine and its ore. Laxalt's service in what he had assumed was a backwater posting placed him instead in the midst of a hotbed of spies and counterspies, assassinations and hairbreadth escapes from violent death.. But Laxalt's war was an inward one as well. Embittered by his country's rejection of his wish to serve it, Laxalt left the U.S. hoping never to see it again. His narrative of his months in Africa, interspersed with passages from his journal and letters from his family reflecting their civilian experiences of the war, record Laxalt's growth to a new wisdom. While he learned the ways of colonial society, participated in diplomatic soires and wild game hunts, associated with spies and their deadly secrets, and fought the repeated ravages of endemic malaria, Laxalt also learned what his country meant to him. This moving and exciting wartime memoir by one of the most important writers of his generation offers readers a compelling account of one of the wars least-known but most important theaters--the steamy, disease-ridden jungles of Equatorial Africa. Once again, Robert Laxalt's powerful prose will engage and move his readers.


From the Publisher
Esteemed Nevada author, Robert Laxalt, has written fourteen books, including SWEET PROMISED LAND and THE BASQUE HOTEL. His most recent novella, DUST DEVILS, was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the 1998 Books for the Teen Age. This is the third time Laxalt's work has been awarded this honor.


About the Author
Nevada author Robert Laxalt has received international critical acclaim for his work. With fourteen books and numerous national magazine articles to his credit, Laxalt's writings have been read and translated throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, and South America. Recipient of numerous awards, he was named the first occupant of the Distinguished Nevada Author Chair at the University of Nevada, Reno. His most recent novella, Dust Devils, was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the 1998 Books for the Teen Age. This is the third time Laxalt's work has been awarded this honor.


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When World War II began, Nevada writer Robert Laxalt was an undergraduate in college. Laxalt was eager to serve his country but was disqualified from military service because of a childhood illness that left him with a heart murmur. Frustrated in his attempts to enlist and shunned by his Nevada neighbors as a draft dodger, Laxalt used his family's political connections to get appointed as a code officer at the U.S. legation in the Belgian Congo. This vivid memoir recalls Laxalt's service in a remote jungle outpost where a secret war was being fought for control of the world's future. Deep in the Congo lay a mine that produced a little known substance called uranium, and for reasons that no one then understood, the Allies and the Germans were struggling ferociously to control the mine and its ore. But Laxalt's war was an inward one as well. Embittered by his country's rejection of his wish to serve it, Laxalt left the U.S. hoping never to see it again, but his tenure in the tropics helped him realize what his country meant to him.


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