Confessions of a Surviving Alien: A Memoir of a Life Defined by One Word-Vietnam

More than a book, more than a non-fiction read, more than a memoir, CONFESSIONS OF A SURVIVING ALIEN will engage the reader like most have never experienced. It will take them through a maze of life’s pathos, and elicit the emotions of sadness, joy, pain, regret, guilt, remorse, pride, fear, revenge, happiness, forgiveness, evil, good, and much uniquely intertwined with humor, often times outrageously so. Although defined by the premise of Vietnam, it is much more than another war account, to the contrary. It is more often the dredge of a neophyte Marine trying to get more into the war and action, than out of it. It is more about his disillusionment in practically every aspect of that officially declared “police action,” but not in ways one might expect.  It is more about his evolution and regression as a human being and inner torment, including feelings of alienation. The book starts at the end, and ends with the start, with a chronological account in between, covering four parts: Before Vietnam (BV), During Vietnam (DV), After Vietnam (AV), and finally, After Marines (AM). The story covers the life of a young American, and follows his incredible journey through the decades to find himself, to explore every possibility of living—and nearly dying—and reach some hopeful level of success, however that is defined. From having a unique tour in Vietnam, to escorting deceased Marines to their families and final resting place, to his life threatened by a mob guy, to learning about a deeply held family secret concerning his father, to experiencing a profound spiritual experience in the unlikely locale of Beverly Hills, California, and much more, author Jon Meade’s biggest challenge may be getting readers to believe his surreal story. He merely shrugs and says, “I am just a very ordinary guy, with an extraordinary life to convey. It is nothing less, nor more than that.” Maybe, he admits, in the end analysis, success in life is merely surviving life, failures and all. With that admission and a very personal and engaging approach and writing style, the genre of Memoirs may never be the same.

While even the specter of Vietnam and being called overseas was enough to shake some young men to their cores, for one disillusioned, neophyte Marine, it was more about getting into the war and the action than it was about getting out of it. As Jon Meade struggles with his own evolution and regression as both a Marine and a human being, he battles both inner torment and feelings of alienation as he begins a journey through the decades to find himself and explore every possibility of living—and nearly dying—to hopefully reach some level of success.

In Confessions of a Surviving Alien, author Jon Meade goes beyond the memoir to deliver an engaging, whirlwind tour through the maze of life's pathos and its storm of emotions—sadness and joy, pain and regret, guilt and fear, revenge and forgiveness, and good and evil. Nevertheless humorous and however defined by the premise of Vietnam, Jon not only shares recollections from his unique tour in Vietnam and his time just after, where he escorted deceased Marines to their families and final resting places, but he also shares tales of his sometimes surreal life back home and stories of his spiritual discoveries after his tour of duty.

Challenging and perhaps at times unbelievable, it is the story of an ordinary guy with an extraordinary life to share. And in the end, it offers a huge dose of reality—that success in life is merely surviving life, failures and all.