The Fourteenth of September: a pivotal time in the anti-Vietnam War movement

The Fourteenth of September by Rita Dragonette is a one woman’s journey through a pivotal time in the Vietnam War. On September 14, 1969, Private First Class Judy Talton celebrated her nineteenth birthday. She secretly joins the campus anti-Vietnam War movement and jeopardizes her army scholarship and her relationships with her family. As the Draft Lottery draws up her birthday, Judy realizes that if she was a man, she would be the first to be sent into war. Doubts creep in and she is torn between her conscience and her scholarship. The stakes get higher as she is faced with a life-altering choice as the clash between young adulthood, age of conscience, feminism and anti-war sentiment heats up to a look into the domestic politics of protest as the world burns. We all know the era but do we know the psychological battle of those who were there? 

I was looking forward to The Fourteenth of September. I don’t normally come across Vietnam era stories especially from the perspective of a young woman. I found the first half of the story to be fairly slow. I’d admit I was bored. There was a bit of confusion as I wasn’t clued into why Judy was nervous joining the movement until much later. Although I also admit I didn’t reread the book blurb before I dove into the story. However, the second half of the book was on fire as Judy finds herself in a no win situation and the war hits closer to home. Judy reminded me of Lucy from the 2007’s Across the Universe. Both women find themselves up against radicals they didn’t agree with and on a path they didn’t truly want to be on. Overall, I enjoyed and recommend The Fourteenth of September. 

The Fourteenth of September is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook.