Everett Alvarez Jr. has given us his inspirational experience as America's first military Vietnam POW. He details his early life, then gets right to his mission over North Vietnam, his plane being downed, his subsequent capture and captivity and, finally, his release and "Return With Honor". There are a number of books written by Vietnam POWs, but this one is noteworthy because he was the first (1964) and the longest held. He speaks hauntingly of his depravation and torture, but he doesn't dwell on it. This is a positive book where Alvarez shows us how he endured for so long. Of interest is his faith; how it helped him cope. Meanwhile the book often shifts back to his family here, first awaiting news of his fate and then later, when they find he is alive, his release. Well-written and inspiring... a great take.

Alvarez was shot down on the FIRST day of the Gulf of Tonkin airstrikes! Hero, no. Lucky, yes. Strong will to survive, yes. So are the hundreds of other POWs. What makes Alvarez unique? The first one to get shot down? Hardly a hero.

"Chained Eagle" is the story of Lieutenant (j.g.) Everett Alvarez. He was a pilot from the U.S.S. "Constellation", shot down over Hon Gai, North Vietnam on August 5, 1964. In fact, Alvarez was downed during the very first bombing sortie of the Indochina War. He remained imprisoned until the general release of all POWs in the Spring of 1973. This reviewer remembers President Johnson announcing the missions at the still bizarre time of 11 p.m. Eastern Time, interrupting a Mets game. (It was never completely clear if LBJ's broadcast came before the actual raids. Doing so would have given the North a free advance warning). The very strongest aspect of CE is how strongly it is written. The portrayals of prison life are more vivid than any other POW accounts this reviewer has read. There is a sharp focus on the food. It was painful to read of how POWs competed with the rats and ants for the slop left outside their cells. By the time permission to actually eat was given, "others" had sampled the stuff! One can only imagine how hungry these guys must have been and desperate for any semblance of decent chow! Alvarez' conditions were tolerable initially but quickly deteriorated as more pilots were downed and subsequently captured. Conditions improved later in the War as America -belatedly! -began to demand better treatment of the prisoners. The Son Tay raid of 1970 also was directly responsible for better conditions because it led North Vietnam to consolidate most Americans into the larger Hanoi area prisons. There was definite safety in numbers, along with a supportive command structure. Another strong aspect of CE is the interspersed reports of how the Alvarez family was faring at home! One deduces a strong effort from co-author Pitch here, since Alvarez was imprisoned 15, 000 miles away. It was not all sweetness and light back in California. CE reminds the reader sharply that the families on the home front suffered too. It is true that Alvarez' wife deserted him while he was imprisoned and that his sister was a serious demonstrator against the War. However the author very quickly pulled his life together again once repatriated, rising above those sharp adversities. This reviewer was surprised to read of two collaborators, both officers, one a Marine LTC! Also, by the end of 1972, many of the newly shot down pilots had turned lukewarm regarding the War. Some rooted for Senator George McGovern (D-SD) in the '72 Presidential Election! The bottom line for CE is that it is one more entry in that solid lineup of POW/MIA accounts. America should always remember the struggles these men endured. We should also acknowledge the 1800+ still unaccounted for in the 4 Indochina countries, plus 6 men in China. Those of us Vets who came back to the World intact should count our blessings daily.

On August 5th, 1964, Lieutenant j.g. Everett Alvarez Jr. was shot down over North Vietnam and became the first U.S. aviator to be taken captive in the Vietnam conflict. Held in confinement for eight and a half years, he would be recorded as the longest held POW second only to Army Captain Jim Thompson.

Spending the entire Vietnam war as a POW, Alvarez was held at different times in the Hanoi Hilton, Briarpatch, and Zoo prison compounds. It would be a year until he finally had contact with other American POW's and much of that first year was in solitary confinement.

Approaching 2 years of captivity, Alvarez and his fellow servicemen were subjected to brutal and sadistic tortures amidst inhumane living conditions for the duration of their stay. Forced to eat vermin infested food and given negligible medical care, he suffered frequently from Dysentery, Beri-Beri, Hepatitis, and other afflictions.

Far along into captivity, Alvarez finally received mail from his family concerning events at home. Sadly, he was to learn that one of his sisters had become an anti-war activist and in what must have seemed like one of the worst examples of betrayal and cruelty, his wife divorced him and then remarried.

During the worst of times, Alvarez never wavered in his beliefs of pride, patriotism, and self-determination to survive and continually assisted his fellow POW's as they assisted him. Upon a joyous and welcome return home, he diligently and proudly re-entered society with his honor and integrity intact culminating with his second marriage to a wonderful woman that made his life complete.

Chained Eagle is an exceptionally good book of one man's heroic struggle and endurance in the face of complete despair and hopelessness. Vividly poignant, inspirational, and heartfelt, this book is deserving of much more than five stars and is very highly recommended to everyone.

This was a great story about an American POW who was captured in the Vietnam War (A POW is a prisoner of war). I would recommend this book to every one of all ages. It is a great and moving book about a man who goes through many trials.

The book starts with the main character and author of the book on his ship the U.S.S. Constellation. The author is commander Everett Alvarez Jr. lieutenant junior grade. He starts his story with his squadron going out to help to other ships who where being attacked by PT boats. Later they went and bombed them at a bay farther inland and Everett or Ev for short was shot down by flak. North Vietnamese civilians captured him and turned him into the military. He was interrogated, but would not answer their questions. A man the POWs nicknamed Owl took him to a jail for a time and continued to interrogate him. At the jail he met two men he called Mr. Sea who spoke English and Mr. Blue who didn't. Shortly after arriving there he was moved yet again to a farmhouse and locked in solitary confinement. A few days later they put him in a jeep and drove to Hanoi a large city in Vietnam. There they brought him to a jail that the POWs called the Hanoi Hilton. For several months he stayed there in a room with the numbers twenty-four on it. The Vietnamese fed him a soup with some kind of animal or animal part in it. This caused him to vomit and have horrible diarrhea. He was interrogated often and would always lie. He was able to walk around in an area behind his cell and made a small sanctuary. Ev carved a cross and wrote out all the important dates and a quote to lift his spirits. The food improved later, the Vietnamese were just testing his limits. Owl would tell him they had shot down eight of his planes, but in reality they only shot down two. He tried to prove this to Ev they had eight piles of plane parts, but Ev noticed they were all from two planes. Later Ev was moved to a smaller prison and met Crazy Man. He also started to hear other POWs. Cray Man was a prisoner who went insane he never talked, but would mime everything. Later Ev was moved again they blindfolded him and put him in a truck. In the truck he met three other POWs. They went to a place they nicknamed the Briar Patch and Ev learned a code that allowed them to talk through tapping on the wall they continued to use and teach this to the new POWs. At the Briar Patch the people were meaner and they tortured the people to get what they wanted. They moved again to another place nicknamed the Zoo and were later sent to Hanoi. At Hanoi they had to walk down a street. People crowded around and hit them and beat them as they passed. Ev and the other people kept getting moved around and after eight and one-half years later they were set free. Ev was reunited with his family, but his wife had deserted him. He was soon famous as the first POW of the Vietnam War and did many speeches and such. It was on his way home from Washington that he met Tammy, whom he later married. This was a wonderful book and quite sad.

My favorite part was when Everett got home safely. It is a very happy and funny part and great end. When they arrive at the Philippians and their way home (the POWs I mean) Ev says he has worms and the doctor says to bland foods. However since he had been in captivity he hadn't had good for almost nine years so he grabbed whatever he wanted and told them to go away when they said he couldn't eat it. When he was in his bed nurses came to take his temperature, but when they tried to take his neighbors temperature he bit her on the [behind]. That is my favorite part.

Everett Alvarez was shot down almost immediately after the Tonkin Gulf "incident." Immediately captured, he endured the next 7 and a half years of captivity while being beaten, brutalized, humiliated, and tortured both physically and mentally. While captured, he had to endure sporadic communication with his family back home, including a marriage that broke apart, and the treatment of fellow POWs who were friends, and family, to him.

Accompanying illustrations help to show how dramatic the story is. Since it is not written in a complex manner, it can fairly retell the story of what he went through before, during and after his ordeal as a POW to any audience.

I recommend this book to my students who want to learn about this painful chapter in American history, and am very impressed that any human being can absorb that which men like Alvarez and John McCain were forced to do.