Drynan's works draw upon the experiences of storied life that spans five continents and more than half a century. They celebrate the selfless service of ordinary servicemen and women who serve on the front lines, and rail at politicians and career officers who send them so casually into harm's way. They immerse his readers in vignettes of Latin America life told with an intimacy born of personal experience. They bear witness to life in Eastern Europe before the fall of the Soviet Union. All are framed in a knowledge of history and geography that often reminds the reader of context too often forgotten. His short story collection The Phoenix serves up five moving tales of American servicemen that stretch from World War II and the Korean conflict up to the present day. It ventures into remotest Venezuela and Mexico to bear witness to the daily struggle for better lives. And it takes readers behind the Iron Curtain to reclaim memories fast fading from collective experience.