The Pythia Press Blog
Letters & War Tales
Essays and true stories by Zalin Grant: daily life in a French village a thousand years old, and the people, places and mysteries of the Vietnam era.
The War and I
“The War and I” Zalin Grant’s memoir recounts the capture of photographers Sean Flynn, son of actor Errol Flynn, and Dana Stone. Also describes the recovery of four dead journalists by Zalin Grant and Wallace…
Letters from a French Village
The Beginning: A Funeral
“The Beginning: A Funeral” – American writer Zalin Grant describes how the death of his French father-in-law led to his relocation to a small village in the heart of France. Contains recipe.
Eating the Wild Boar
“Eating the Wild Boar” – American writer Zalin Grant describes his first encounter with the French tradition of hunting and eating the wild boar. Contains recipes.
Wife of a Country Doctor
“Wife of a Country Doctor” – The busy life of Dominique Dumas, the wife of a local French doctor in the village where American writer Zalin Grant lives. Contains recipes.
The Real Deal: Movies or Cheese?
I got back to the country from Paris, where I was consulting with our lawyer about selling a book owned by Pythia Press to Hollywood, and my wife Claude said, as I walked in, “How about the cheese story? When…
Notes from the Summer
“Notes from the Summer” – American writer Zalin Grant describes the summertime goings-on in the small French village where he lives.
My Last Hunt
“My Last Hunt” – American writer Zalin Grant describes the day he went on a hunt for wild boar with French hunters and his decision to make it his last time for hunting anything.
The Model Surgeon
“The Model Surgeon” – American writer Zalin Grant describes his experiences with a friend in France, Odile Langlois, who was a highly-regarded surgeon…
Living the Longest
“Living the Longest” – American writer Zalin Grant tries to find out why so many people in his French village live to nearly a 100 and reaches the conclusion it has something to do with being gay.
The Village Winemaker
“The Village Winemaker” – American writer Zalin Grant harvests grapes with the winemaker in his French village and then has a morning tipple with the vigneron.
The War and I, Part 2
“The War and I Part II” – American writer Zalin Grant describes his return to Cambodia in 2001 to search for the remains of photographer Sean Flynn, son of actor Errol Flynn.
A Slice of Old France
“A Slice of Old France” – American writer Zalin Grant describes his visit to a part of France that has barely changed for the past 200 years.
Honoring a WWII Pilot
“Honoring a WWII Pilot” by Zalin Grant gives an account of the memorial established in a small French village for a Canadian pilot flying with the British Air Force who was shot down in World War II.
The War and I, Part 3
“The War and I Part III – American writer Zalin Grant describes his return to Cambodia in 2002 to search for the remains of photographer Sean Flynn, son of the actor Errol Flynn.
La Fête: Oysters and Foie Gras
“La Fete: Oysters and Foie Gras” – American writer Zalin Grant describes how the French celebrate Christmas and New Year’s.
Two French Weddings and a Third
“Two French Weddings and a Third” – American writer Zalin Grant describes two French weddings and compares them to the wedding of his niece in America.
War Tales
Who Murdered the CIA Chief?
“Who Murdered the CIA Chief?” is a shocking and untold account of what really happened when former CIA director William Colby supposedly drowned in a boating accident on April 26, 1996, by Zalin Grant who knew…
The Day John McCain Got Shot Down
“The Day John McCain Got Shot Down” by Vietnam expert Zalin Grant gives a never-before published account of what happened to McCain on October 26, 1967.
POWs Left Behind in Indochina
“POWs Left Behind in Indochina” draws on the 40-years work of Zalin Grant on the missing in action issue and reaches the conclusion that some POWs were left behind after the Vietnam War.
Vietnam’s Worst POW Camp, Part One
“Vietnam’s Worst Prison Camp-Part One” by Zalin Grant is an excerpt taken from his book “Survivors” describing the actions of Marine turncoat Bob Garwood who helped the Viet Cong guard 18 U.S. POWs.
Vietnam’s Worst POW Camp, Part Two
“Vietnam’s Worst Prison Camp-Part Two” by Zalin Grant is an excerpt taken from his book “Survivors” describing the split between 18 American POWs that left many of them dead of starvation.
Pham Xuan An: Vietnam’s Top Spy
I began to suspect that Pham Xuan An was a Viet Cong spy shortly after I arrived in Saigon. Around New Year’s 1965 I went to a party with a lot of journalists, where I met Beverly Deepe, a reporter for the New…
The Sean Flynn I Knew
Sean and Errol Flynn had only one thing in common. Both were uncommonly handsome. At six-two, blond, hazel eyes, Sean was considered by many to be le plus beau. Like his father he attracted women. Unlike his…
Vann Nath: Eyewitness to Genocide
Cambodian Painter Vann Nath was one of only seven survivors of the Khmer Rouge’s infamous Toul Sleng torture center, where 14,000 people perished during the genocidal regime of Pol Pot. His paintings in Phnom…
Dana & Louise: A War Couple
When CBS cameraman Dana Stone and Time photographer Sean Flynn were captured in Cambodia in 1970, Stone’s wife, Louise, launched a campaign to free them. She became so good at collecting information that Gen….
Torture I’ve Seen
In “Torture I’ve Seen” former U.S. intelligence officer and author Zalin Grant describes a terrorist’s attempt to kill him in Vietnam. Grant witnessed waterboarding and other forms of torture during the war….
Living with General Sherman
I was born and raised in the first town in the South to secede from the Union. Our people had played a big role in starting the Civil War. One of our lawyers had drawn up the Articles of Secession. And in…
Mary Meyer: A Highly Suspicious Death
Author Zalin Grant casts new light on the unsolved murder of JFK’s mistress, Mary Meyer, in 1964. A young black man was charged with the murder but acquitted. Grant quotes extensively from his exclusive…
Gamel Woolsey: Eyewitness to the Spanish Civil War
I wrote this piece in response to a request by the South Carolina Academy of Authors. Gamel Woolsey was to be inducted into the Academy in 2011. I was asked to provide an account of how I had come to publish…
Gamel Woolsey: Témoignage sur la guerre civile espagnole
J’ai écris cet article à la demande de l’Académie des auteurs de Caroline du Sud. Gamel Woolsey allait y être reçue en 2011. On me demandait de faire le récit des raisons qui m’avaient amené à publier son…
The True Phoenix: Vietnam’s Big Misunderstanding
Chau was a Buddhist from Central Vietnam. His family had served as functionaries in the royal government, and he joined the communist Viet Minh to fight against the French occupiers at the end of World War…
Search for Missing Newsmen
On April 6, 1970, Sean Flynn and Dana Stone were captured in Cambodia. Flynn, son of actor Errol Flynn, was a photographer for Time Magazine. Dana Stone was a CBS cameraman. Shortly after the two disappeared…