Tracers.

THE STORY: A composite or collage of interrelated scenes, the play follows the lives of a group of grunts as they move from basic training, on to combat in Vietnam, and finally to the shattering realization that their lives will be forever affected by the horrors that they have witnessed-and been a part of. Dealing with the grim realities of the battlefield-free-fire zones, trip wires, drugs, body bags, rat infested bunkers and the ever-present stench of death-the men become increasingly isolated from the outside world and from a society that finds honor in such mindless violence and destruction. Ultimately the play, through its gut-wrenching verisimilitude, becomes a moving and eloquent plea for sanity and forbearance, as it assails our minds and hearts with the grim message of what can happen when conscience is overruled by expedi-ence, and clear reason by a warped sense of national purpose.Vincent Caristi is the author of 'Tracers.' with ISBN 9780822211648 and ISBN 0822211645.