Fallen Angels

Chapter 1 p. 3-12

1. (3) What do you think “Congs” refer to? Why?

2. (5) Why does the main character, Perry, say he ended up in Vietnam? Why should he not be there?

3. (5) What do you think a “social disease” refers to? Why?

4. (7) What does 1320 hours mean in civilian time?

5. (9) How is Gates described in the story? What does he say about the cleaning lady?

6. (10) What part of the country is Gates from?

7. (12) What does Peewee threaten to do to the ranger who called him “boy”?

Chapter 2 p. 13-24

8. (14) Who is Kenny? Why is Richard sending money to him?

9. (15) What does Peewee say he likes about the army?

10. (17) What does being “in country” refer to?

11. (18) What is a “hooch”?

12. (22) Why are the soldiers told to stay away from the women? Why are they told to stay away from drugs?

13. (22) Who is “Charlie”?

14. (23-24) Why did Peewee think the army had to be “pretty cool”?

Chapter 3 p. 25 – 42

15. (27) What is the name of the large soldier who helps Peewee and Perry load the pump onto the truck?

16. (28) Why does Jenkins say he joined the infantry?

17. (31) How did Perry know that the chopper pilot was a “career guy”?

18. (33) Why are Perry and the others told that they must keep their M-16 ‘s clean?

19. (35) When Perry was back home in Brooklyn, where would he go to clear his mind? Where do you go to clear your mind?

20. (37) What is the name of the sergeant in charge of Perry’s squad? How is he described?

21. (38) Who was Perry playing for when he injured his knee?

22. (39) What is the name of the Italian kid in the squad?

23. (41) Who dies from the booby trap? Since this person said he was going to die early, what is this an example of?

Chapter 4 p. 42-56

24. (43) Who was the only other dead person that Perry had seen before Jenkins? How was it different?

25. (44) Why does Lt. Carroll refer to soldiers as “angel warriors”?

26. (45) Why is Carroll unsure about being a priest?

27. (46) Why doesn’t Perry mention Jenkins in his letter to mama?

28. (48) Which character is a huge movie fan? What does Brunner refer to him as?

29. (49) What does “Willy Peter” refer to? What does it do?

30. (51) What is the ARVN? Who are they fighting against?

31. (53) What does Peewee buy from one of the villages?

32. (55-56) Why does Sgt. Simpson say Capt. Stewart is trying to pick up his body count?

Chapter 5 – p. 57 – 69

33. (57) How old does Peewee say you have to be to drink in Chicago?

34. (59) Where is Lt. Carroll from?

35. (61) Why did Kenny start looking up to Richard instead of his mother?

36. (63) What does Perry compare the noise of the choppers to? What is this an example of?

37. (65) How does Perry know they are getting close to the action?

38. (67) How is personification used in the second paragraph on page 67?

39. (68) What is a LURP team?

40. (69) What is the “real question” that Perry is asking himself?

Chapter 6 – p. 70-82

41. (70) Who does Perry have guard duty with?

42. (73) What does Lobel’s uncle do?

43. (75) Why does Perry say he doesn’t have a girlfriend? Why does he want one now?

44. (77) Why does Perry say he is fighting in the war when asked by the camera crew?

45. (78) What is a “Huey”?

46. (81) How many VCs does Peewee say he has seen since being in Vietnam?

47. (81-82) Why does Monaco want the men to practice volleyball?

Chapter 7 – p. 83-96

48. (83) What does the press report say about the number of VCs killed? Is this accurate? Why?

49. (85) Perry says that the dead VC was treated like what?

50. (86) What does Perry say a lot of black men were leaving gangs for back home?

51. (88) What is causing Perry to be in pain?

52. (91) Why do Johnson and Walowick get in a fight?

53. (92) Why is Peewee upset with his girlfriend back home?

54. (96) What does Perry find out he has to do?

Chapter 8 p. 97-107

55. (97) Who is the lieutenant from Charlie Company?

56. (98) Where is Scotty, the machine gunner, from?

57. (100) What causes Perry’s hands to get cut up?

58. (103) Who does Lt. Doyle realize the men were firing at?

59. (105) Whose birthday fell on Thanksgiving?

60. (106) What does Perry borrow from Brewer?

Chapter 9 p. 108 – 120

61. (108-109) What does Monaco do that angers Brunner? How would you react?

62. (109) What bothers Perry about Brewer’s praying?

63. (111) What does Lobel say the squad would be if they were in a movie?

64. (115) What does Peewee buy from the villagers?

65. (116) Why is Capt. Stewart not interested in pacification runs?

66. (117) What was the main reason that Lobel joined the army?

67. (119) What question has Perry always had trouble answering?

68. (120) What does Sgt. Simpson say the men must do at the hamlet?

Chapter 10 p. 121 – 128

69. (122) Why is Perry glad that he doesn’t have to carry the radio?

70. (123) What does Perry wonder about Kenny?

71. (126) Who gets shot during the second trip to the hamlet?

72. (128) Who recites a prayer? Who is the prayer for?

Chapter 11 p. 129 – 145

73. (129) What does Sgt. Simpson ask Perry to do for Lt. Carroll?

74. (132) Perry describes the war as “hours of boredom, seconds of ____________ .

75. (137) Who is the new Lieutenant? What does Captain Stewart say will be the first thing he does?

76. (138) What are Lobel and Brunner promoted to? What are the rest of the men promoted to?

77. (139) Who do the men have to run escort service for? Who does Peewee think they really are?

78. (141) What is the name of Perry’s mother?

79. (143) What part of his mother’s letter makes Richard sad?

80. (144) What holiday does Perry forget about?

Chapter 12 p. 145-150

81. (145) What does Peewee tell Walowick he should major in when he goes back home?

82. (147) What are “sappers”?

83. (149) How would you describe Johnson’s feelings toward the war?

Chapter 13 p. 151-166

84. (151) What do Perry and Peewee talk about all day?

85. (152) What is the name for the Vietnamese New Year?

86. (155) What begins happening at the beginning of the Vietnamese New Year?

87. (159) What does Perry almost forget to do?

88. (161) Who was Faye Jackson?

89. (164) Whose gun goes off in the chopper?

90. (165) Who accidentally shoots off the first flare?

91. (166) When the men get back to the base, what does Perry realize about the claymore that he set down?

Chapter 14 p. 167-188

92. (167) Why were the men somewhat glad that it was Turner who died?

93. (168) Whose girlfriend writes a letter saying that she wants to get married?

94. (169) How does Monaco say he will plan the wedding?

95. (172) How many enemy soldiers does Stewart list as killed?

96. (175) Why does Perry worry that God may think he is a hypocrite?

97. (175) What does Alpha Company find out that they must do instead of the 173rd Airborne?

98. (177) Who “freaks out” while they are in the village?

99. (178) Why does Monaco say Vietnam is different from the projects in Chicago?

100. (180) How does Perry narrowly escape death in the hamlet?

101. (182) Why does Alpha Company decide to burn the whole village down?

102. (183) What simile and metaphor were used to describe the choppers and dead soldiers?

103. (187) Describe the dream that Perry has about the VC in the hut?

104. (188) Why does Peewee’s face swell up?

Chapter 15 p.188-204

105. (189) What reason does Peewee give Gates to give his brother for killing the VC/

106. (191) What does the Sgt from the boat battalion tell Gates about the S. Vietnamese troops?

107. (195) Why does Gates think that Gearhardt held off on the ambush?

108. (197) What does Perry try to burn off Gates with a cigarette?

109. (199) What happens to Perry’s feet?

110. (204) Whose bone is sticking out of his leg?

Chapter 16 p.205 – 217

111. (207) What do the medics think happened to Brewer?

112. (208) Why does the medic tell Gates that he is lucky but he is unlucky?

113. (212) Where is Joe Derby from? What happened to him?

114. (213) Who does Perry see again in the hospital?

115. (215) What does Perry do with his Purple Heart?

116. (217) How long has Perry been in Vietnam?

Chapter 17 p.218-231

117. (220) Where does Perry say that he got the pork chops from?

118. (221) How many days does it rain for?

119. (224) Why does Johnson get into an argument with Dongan?

120. (227) Who tells the guys that he is Jewish?

121. (229) Who does Perry get letters from?

122. (230) What does Perry try to make for the Vietnamese children?

123. (231) What happened with the Vietnamese woman and her kid?

124. (231) How would you feel about the war after witnessing what happened on page 231?

Chapter 18 p.232 – 252

125. (233) How does the guy that Lobel sees get hit?

126. (234) What does Dongan think about Lobel?

127. (237) Why does Perry feel worn out?

128. (238) What does Perry say he wants Peewee to have if he dies?

129. (239) What does Peewee find and give Perry?

130. (242) What does Dongan say was rougher than Vietnam?

131. (246) What does Perry say the wounded Vietnamese sounded like?

132. (249) What does Perry forget to do when he throws the grenade?

133. (252) Who gets killed and has their leg blown off?

Chapter 19 p.253 – 261

134. (253) What do the men do with the dead bodies?

135. (256) What does Jamal say that he can’t believe?

136. (261) When Peewee and Perry see the dead US soldier, what does he have his hands around?

Chapter 20 p.262 – 271

137. (262) Why do Perry and the men start firing on the S. Vietnamese troops?

138. (264) What does Walowick do in his sleep?

139. (266) Why does Gearhardt give a copy of the letter he wrote to his wife to Perry and Walowick?

140. (267) What does Gearhardt want his wife to tell his kids?

141. (271) Why does Captain Stewart get mad at Peewee?

Chapter 21 p.272 – 283

142. (272) What does Gearhardt want to do? Why is he not allowed?

143. (275) What does Peewee say about a soldier who isn’t scared?

144. (280) What do the VC hide in by Route 586? Who spots them?

145. (283) What happens below as Peewee and Perry are traveling up the ridge?

Chapter 22 p.284 – 297

146. (285) Why does Perry keep a frag grenade for himself?

147. (287) What does Perry hope to God for?

148. (287) What do Peewee and Perry hide in?

149. (289) Why does Perry worry about playing dead?

150. (290) Peewee and Perry think that they will be ok if they can make it until what?

151. (293) How old is the VC that Perry and Peewee kill in the spider hole?

152. (295) Describe the situation that Monaco is in when Perry and Peewee reach the landing zone?

153. (297) What was the only think that Perry could think of when he got on the chopper?

Chapter 23 p. 298 – 309

154. (298) What does Monaco say happened to the squad?

155. (299) Where did the choppers take Perry and Peewee?

156. (302) How long does Peewee say he has before he goes home?

157. (303) What does the note from Monaco say?

158. (305) How are the reports about the war different from what Perry and Peewee have seen?

159. (307) What does Perry find out about Judy Duncan?

160. (309) Who does Perry daydream about on the plane?