They Say There Was a War By Richard David Wissolik, Director & General Editor (540 pages, photos, drawings, maps) Reviewer:  James Healy Overall Rating: Three Stars: Recommended. A solid effort. This is a compilation of 56 oral histories gathered over multiple years by a team of editors and published by the Saint Vincent College, Center for Northern Application Studies. This is a follow-up to a previously published volume entitled The Long Road. The histories are predominately about service people from the Pennsylvania area. Of the 56, just 4 are navy shipboard histories--one from the USS KIDD (DD-661), two from the carrier USS MONTEREY (CVL-26) (President Ford's duty station), another involving the minesweeper USS MINIVET (AM-371) (lost after the war sweeping mines). Additional stories involve a navy corpsman, a Seabee and finally a merchant marine veteran. Eight marine veterans also tell their stories. The intent of the mainly academic staff was to once again demonstrate through actual veteran stories that was is indeed hell and not at all like the movies--which they succeed in doing. Both unbelievable brutality and unexpected kindness are part of almost every combat veteran's story. However, the book is not one that a reader is likely to read uninterruptedly from cover to cover. Each story commands your interest and you begin to wonder--What did he do after the war? A few of the 56 stories fall short of providing the rest of the story. Vintage photographs, drawings, posters and maps add visual interest. Availability: Saint Vincent College Bookstore http://www.stvincent.edu/napp17 $30.00 plus $5.00 shipping Barnes and Noble