Unsung Patriot: Guy T. Vikniskki, How the Stars and Stripes Began

Virginia G. Vassallo
Krazy Duck Productions (2007)
ISBN 9780977673926
Reviewed by David Olvera for Reader Views (5/07)


“Unsung Patriot: Guy T. Vikniskki, How the Stars and Stripes Began” is a tale of two books, the one that it is, and the one that it could be.  By reading the title and the forward one expects to hear the tale of how the Armed Forces newspaper began and Guy T. Vikniskki, the journalism pioneer behind it.  However, the book strays from this initial introduction and unfolds only a rich biography of Vikniskki. 

Vikniskki’s biography is well-supported. Vassallo (Vikniskki’s granddaughter) has done her homework and presents a near perfect archive of her grandfather’s entire life, even though she never met the man.  At times the archival approach can be confusing.  There are several Vikniskkis in play and without a clear chart it is hard to keep up, on some occasions the author repeats chronological points as in the case of chapters one and two by introducing overlapping genealogies, etc. 

The author concludes her introduction with, “Who is my grandfather?”  As I concluded the book, I never felt a connection between the author and her subject.  There was no internalization of a bond between granddaughter and grandfather.  I felt the author did not fully convey what this man’s life really meant to her, even though she framed the book in this context.

But “Unsung Patriot” also has vast potential.  Vassallo’s superb documentation of Vikniskki strikes me as a great novel on wartime journalism that was not written.  Luckily, literature has sequels and Vassallo’s pen is literally sitting on greatness -- if not absolute greatness.  Vikniskki’s work is so incredibly relevant to the current war on terrorism; it almost jumps out of the pages to shake you.  Stars and Stripes helped boost moral and contributed to heroic WWII efforts, but modern media does not echo Vikniskki’s patriotism.  Simply put, today’s journalism needs people like Vikniskki.  I know this because Vassallo paints a long, yet elegant portrait of a man that saw an opportunity in journalism and seized it for the good of an entire nation.

Overall, “Unsung Patriot” has many facts and many details.  It is a respectable biography on a very relevant figure for our day and age.  Ultimately, it leaves you at the edge of your seat waiting for Vikniskki to make a triumphant leap into our time. 

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