Tom Wahrheit was a combat infantryman in Vietnam.  He was gay.  He was Mormon.  He was manic-depressive.  He could have been so much more… 

From his first breakdown during the war through his attempts to navigate the rough seas of post-military life, Tom struggles to reconcile the different facets of his life. In Tom’s story, there are incidents of true ugliness, with no sugar coating.  There are also interludes of peace when Tom, for a time, knows true contentment. 

Broken Saint is the penetrating, fictionalized account of a real man torn asunder by forces beyond his control, a very good man who should have been a productive and successful member of society.  

Ultimately, this is a story of intolerance and how it is internalized and often prevents us from being true to ourselves.  In Tom’s case, the conflict between his sexual orientation and his religion, along with a poorly treated mental illness, erupted with catastrophic results.

 

About the Author

Mark E. Zamen met the man upon whose life this novel is based on their first day in the Army.  Mark was inspired to tell Tom’s story after witnessing what he has gone through over the course of their nearly four-decades-long friendship.  Both men hope that readers will derive knowledge and understanding from learning of these sometimes sad, sometimes euphoric, often grotesque actions and experiences – and the psychological processes underlying them.  Mark has previously written for various publications and authored a book on Jack London’s oratorical career, entitled Standing Room Only.  Mark lives in Mountain View, California with his wife.  They have a 23-year-old daughter.