The Foot Soldier

By Mark Rubinstein

The Foot Soldier won the 2014 Silver Benjamin Franklin Award for Popular Fiction. Read.

Right after college graduation, Costa, a lower-middle-class kid from Buffalo, New York, is drafted into the US army and plunged into the Vietnam War. The Foot Solder catapults the reader back to the conflict that changed America.

This is a compelling novella of morality—right or wrong in a split second in the hell of the jungle—when it really matters, regardless of rank, military orders, or rule books. It asks how a soldier survives, how he deals with dislocation, and how he reacts when given an order that defies everything he’s ever believed about the human soul.

Read an Excerpt | Book Club Reading Group Guide

Praise for The Foot Soldier

“I’m so grateful I was urged to read The Foot Soldier, despite its subject matter being something I normally would have avoided. Many women are like me: we avoid war stories. In this case, that would be a huge mistake. You will not be able to put this story down—or forget it. The Foot Soldier is a must-read for everyone.”
—Linda C. Sutter, former Director of Talent, CBS Sports, CBS Television Network

“Whatever war we engage in, the same tragedies seem to repeat themselves. This does not make that war any less relevant to our understanding or appreciation of the significance of these traumatic experiences. Close your eyes and you are there. The Foot Soldier does just that. It brings you to the hell of wartime combat. It’s a compelling story.”
—Warren Glaser, Ltjg MC USNR, Battalion Surgeon, 3rd Battalion, Fifth Marine Regiment, First Marine Division, Korea, 1951–1952

“The The Foot Soldier lets you experience the Vietnam War without having been there. It shows the terror and brutality of jungle warfare and their effect on the American riflemen—those who bore the greatest burden. It’s every bit as compelling as The Things They Carried. It’s a chilling story but a must-read.”
—Martin Isler, Cpl, 108th Infantry, World War II, Pacific Theatre

“The story describes the days in the life of a grunt during the Vietnam War. It’s very well written.”
—Bob Elton, 1st Lt, MACV (Military Assistance Command, Vietnam) MAT I-13, 1970–1971