Captain for Dark Mornings is the poignant story of not only the war in Vietnam, but the untold story of the effects of that war on the thousands of Vietnam veterans and their loved ones.

Captain for Dark Mornings is told through the experiences of a psych officer, Shad Meshad, who brilliantly unravels the complexities that confronted the young men and women who fought in Vietnam.

It was 1970, and by then Vietnam was as much a state of mind as a place. A troubled state of mind. Above the genuine reaction to the horror and danger of actual warfare, there were severe internal problems: drugs, racial tensions, low morale, fraggings, and alienation. The Army met this mad disorder with mad order—an increase in regulations. The more out-of-control the war became for the young Americans fighting it, the harder regs clamped down. As a psych officer, Meshad dealt with the fallout at the 95th Evac Hospital in Danang and at the fire bases he choppered off to.

Meshad has recreated a gripping true-life story that has the compelling drama of Deer Hunter, the tragedy of Born on the Fourth of July, the candor of Apocalypse Now, and the searing indictment of Platoon and Full Metal Jacket. The listener will experience a shocking firsthand account of the insanity of that war and why the current Vietnam-related problems still have not been resolved for thousands of Americans who were there more than 50 years ago. Readjustment back to civilian life for combat vets looks the same now as it did then, before PTSD was recognized.

Those who have wondered what the traumas of war are really like will find Captain for Dark Mornings engrossing and profoundly humanistic. It is a book that celebrates the resilience of man’s spirit and his never-ending search for dignity and a sense of self-esteem.

Shad Meshad lives in Los Angeles, California. He is the president of the National Veterans Foundation, which he founded in 1985. An advocate for veterans for more than 50 years, Meshad is involved nationally and internationally as a consultant, lecturer, and trainer on veterans' readjustment problems and programs. He is currently working on a second book, which deals with veterans on the streets of America from the 1970s to the present-day, with a focus on vets of past and recent wars.