The Will He Make It, the Saga by Brian Wizard follows Willard “Willie” Maykett across war, survival, homecoming, and a lifetime spent trying to answer the question at the heart of the series: Will he make it?
The saga begins with Book One: Permission to Kill, a fictionalized story based upon true-life experiences of the author and other Vietnam War aviators. At only eighteen, Willie enters the United States Army searching for adventure, purpose, and a chance to become somebody. Instead, he finds himself flying into the front lines of the Vietnam War as a helicopter door gunner with the Thunderhawk Assault Helicopter Company and the legendary smokeship Pollution IV. Combat becomes his normal world—one where survival may depend upon his ability to kill before he is killed.
In Book Two: Back in the World, Willie returns home, but leaving Vietnam does not mean leaving the war behind. The instincts that helped keep him alive in combat follow him into civilian life, where anger, depression, restlessness, memories of war, and untreated combat stress make “normal” life feel increasingly foreign. His search for freedom and direction takes him through America and beyond as he struggles to understand what happened to him and where he belongs now that the shooting has stopped.
Book Three: Permission to Live continues Willie’s story as survival takes on an entirely different meaning. No longer simply trying to survive combat, he must learn how to live with its lasting effects, confront the psychological wounds that followed him home, fight for recognition and assistance, pursue his creative ambitions, and continue his determined search for his own version of the American Dream.
Together, these books follow decades of one man’s life—from an eighteen-year-old seeking adventure, to a combat veteran struggling to find his place in the world, to an artist and survivor determined to build a life on his own terms.
The Will He Make It, the Saga currently includes:
Permission to Kill
Back in the World
Permission to Live
The story is not over. Book Four, Permission to Die, is currently in creation, continuing Willie Maykett’s long-running journey through life, survival, and whatever comes next.