''The Cage'' is a 2002 book by Tom Abraham. The work centers on his time spent serving in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

and thereafter, and it caused controversy among veterans of the war when it was revealed that he had never been missing from his unit as claimed in the book.

Synopsis

The book covers the period that Tom Abraham, an Englishman, spent in the US Army during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. It describes how he served as an officer in the 1st Cavalry Unit and was captured by the

Vietcong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the Communism, communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vi ...

, before escaping and finding his unit again. The book is divided into four sections, the first is about his time in England, the second is his time in America, the third is his time fighting in the Vietnam War and the final section is about his capture and treatment by his captors. After the war he claimed to have suffered post-traumatic stress and after being arrested by the police suffered a breakdown.

Controversy

After the book's publication, several Vietnam War veterans expressed concern over the events described in the book, in particular Abraham's supposed capture and imprisonment. The Defence POW-Missing Personnel Office did not list him as a POW and his service record does not list the time spent in captivity either.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cage, The 2002 non-fiction books Vietnam War books