The War Within: One More Step at a Time (Doonesbury Books (Andrews & McMeel))

But those who love him see alarming signs of trouble, namely anger and alcohol.

First there's the punching of an MP. The initial stages of B.D.'s recovery from losing a leg in Iraq were dramatically portrayed in The Long Road Home: One Step at a Time, but his healing journey was far from over. With his coaching job at Walden re-secured and the marathon PT sessions paying off, B.D.'s return to normalcy seems to be progressing well. is fortunate in finally getting to a place where he can hear them.

Proceeds from sales of The War Within benefit Fisher House. Then there's the daily breakfast of beer, a subject not open for discussion even with a best-intentioned friend like Mike Doonesbury. Their sessions together form an extraordinary and moving chronicle of catharsis and coming-to-terms. As this powerful sequel shows, the "war within" can be a long and lonely struggle, hardly the life of a "glamorous amputee" imagined by his daughter's jealous classmate. As B.D. admits to his doctor, "I'd rather sleep with my weapon than my wife! And "the screaming at night isn't very Christmassy," Boopsie notes. The words "Welcome home, soldier," are powerful and transformative, and B.D. How messed up is that?" Messed up enough that our wounded warrior forces himself to begin circling the local Vet Center, where he is gently and skillfully reeled in by a remarkable counselor and fellow Vietnam Vet named Elias.