Prehistoric vietnam was home to some of the worlds earliest civilizations and societiesmaking them one of the world. Although vietnams invasion of kampuchea put an end to the killing fields, china was threatened by vietnams extension of influence in the region and began a border war with vietnam. The ultimate 2020 list of best vietnam books to read. Learn about vietnam war protests, the tet offensive, the my lai massacre, the pentagon papers and more. After decades of conflict, vietnam found itself with the worlds fourthlargest army but one of the worlds poorest economies. It is the definitive history of the us civil war it gives equal treatment to both sides, and is more than one million words, but is never boring.
The work also included a damning warning about what the u. Looks at the experiences of a chinook helicopter unit during a rare example of a humanitarian truce during the vietnam war, three days in which the unit focuses on rescuing vietnamese villages cut off by floods caused by a massive typhoon. Oliver layton press, c1966, by tuli kupferberg and robert bashlow page images at hathitrust. The vietnam war lasted from 19641973the longest war in american history until it was overtaken by the one in afghanistanand servicemen typically did oneyear tours of duty. This led to the division of the country, which in turn led to the vietnam war with major human and material losses for the country. The disaster that was the vietnam war the new york times. Why the vietnam war produced such iconic music time. An intimate history tells once again the painful tale of americas protracted, divisive and most would. Karnow is well qualified to write this text, with a career reporting on vietnam that dates back to the 1950s. A television history, to accompany the book s release. The making of postcolonial vietnam, 19191950, and coediting credit for making sense of the vietnam war. The vietnam war lasted about 40 years and involved several countries.
This was a pretty solid history of the events leading up to the vietnam war, the war itself, and the aftermath, but i think i wanted more from this book. For vietnam as a whole, the war resulted in some 3 million military and civilian deaths, 362,000 invalids, 1 million widows, and 800,000 orphans. A very important book and history of an era we in america looked away from. The conflict, its soldiers and its returning veterans appear in. Nov 08, 2012 our books experts recommends 10 authors to read on the conflict. Before that you had world war ii when they took iwo jima and, ok, there was. Among the most positive is an abundance of topnotch books, many written by veterans of the conflict. Online shopping for vietnam war history books in the books store.
Not a single punch is pulled in this history of the vietnam war, which is. When he returned to the united states, he studied intermittently at harvard university and. The best vietnam war books five books expert recommendations. Choose from used and new textbooks or get instant access with etextbooks and digital materials. The book vietnam a history of the war is a good showcase of the vietnam war and the events that caused it. The best histories of the vietnam war council on foreign relations. As a consequence, after the war it was impossible for the united states to search the battlefields for remains of its dead and missing. The greatest battle of the vietnam air war the air combat trilogy book 2 jeffrey ethell. Archaeological findings from 1965, still under research, show the remains of two hominins closely related to sinanthropus, dating as far back as the middle pleistocene era, roughly half a million years ago.
His coverage of the war in dispatches was groundbreaking for its presented a type of journalism that traded monotonous details for visceral descriptions. Sure, the american war in vietnam captured the attention of the west, but centuries before that vietnam was scrapping with the chinese, the khmers, the chams and the mongols. Critically acclaimed since its release in 1977, dispatches was one of the first books. Vietnam war summaryoverview of the conflict history. After reflecting on the stories he saw onscreen, he told us that the time had come for them to be told. The necessary war, michael lind if you only read one book on the vietnam war, this is it. Because north vietnam was never occupied, it was impossible to search prisons and cemeteries there. The sacrifices and contributions of our vietnam veterans the reader is struck by the words in the dedication. These include winners of national book awards and pulitzer prizes, both fiction and nonfiction.
The following texts are used and recommended by alpha history authors. Within days, the usbacked south vietnamese government turned on its heels and fled, its leaders spirited out of the country with american help after more than a century of foreign domination and 21 years of war and division, vietnam was. Welcome to alpha history s selection of vietnam war books. Extremely wellwritten, this reallife story of love, compassion, fortitude, and survival is absolutely captivating. The title is somewhat misleading, as this is really a history of the vietnam war rather than vietnam itself. Feb 05, 2008 a rumor of war, philip caputo to call it the best book about vietnam is to trivialise it. Before even reading the first page of they were soldiers. Organized chaos, seemed like a contradiction in terms, but after a few weeks in vietnam, it seemed plausible.
Tim obrien, in full william timothy obrien, born october 1, 1946, austin, minnesota, u. Welcome to alpha historys selection of vietnam war books. Halfway around the world, another cold war conflict was escalating. Bestselling, price low to high, price high to low, average. The war ended on 30 april 1975 by the fact that north vietnam took the southern part. In the early 1900s, nationalist movements emerged in vietnam, demanding more selfgovernance and less french influence. Tokyo conquered french indochina but ended up destroying the institutions and people who ran the colony. Diving into a book about the vietnam war can be a daunting task. A professor at the university of chicago, bradley already has an impressive list of prior works on the history of vietnam, including imagining vietnam and america. Phu in 1954 and forced to withdraw from vietnam after nearly a century of colonial rule, france quickly evacuated 25,000 vietnamese children of french parentage and.
The book explains in depth the events that took place during this horrific war. Vietnam war protests began small among peace activists and leftist intellectuals on college campuses but gained national prominence in 1965, after the united states began bombing north vietnam in. There was a time when all i knew of vietnam war books was tim. Mar 02, 2015 sheehan, who covered the vietnam war for the new york times, won the pulitzer prize for chronicling the unusual story of john paul vann. The earlier volumes consist of shorter monographs produced shorter after or during the end of the vietnam war.
After we posted this article, times readers weighed in with their. Whether or not you lived through the vietnam era, the world looked away. The vietnam war has roots in vietnam s centuries of domination by imperial and colonial powersfirst china, which ruled ancient vietnam, and then france, which took control of vietnam in the late 1800s and established french indochina. This epic threevolume masterpiece is to war what gibbons decline and fall of the roman empire was to history. It felt impersonal, focusing more on events than people.
The vietnam war was the first war the united states lost. Later volumes consist of longer studies that were the result of the united states armys historical branchs effort to produce a comprehensive and authoritative history of the united states army participation in the vietnam war. An epic novel of vietnam by anthony grey happens to be one of the best books on vietnam war. Running alongside the vietnam war, the conflict in laos, which lasted from 1953 to 1975, was nominally a civil war fought between communist forces backed by north vietnam. From the awardwinning historian and filmmakers of the civil war, baseball, the war, the roosevelts, and others. Communist forces ended the war by seizing control of south vietnam in 1975, and the country was unified as the socialist republic of vietnam the following year. History of vietnam lonely planet travel information. They are dropped into the jungle of vietnam as boys and are forced to fight. A history is a clearly written and accessible history of the vietnam war, starting with the early days of french colonialisation all the way through to the fall of saigon. This book is an epic war novel that centers around the timeless story of a young marine lieutenant, waino mellas, and his comrades in bravo company. Some forty years after american withdrawal from vietnam, the u. How comics captured americas opinions about the vietnam war. But when the subject matter is vietnam, they outdo themselves. My daughter read this for a ninth grade project and it helped her greatly.
Vietnam simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. M atterhorn has been hailed as a brilliant account of war. A slew of war memoirs stand with the best writing of that genre. These are my personal memories and observations during my tour in vietnam. Children of the vietnam war travel smithsonian magazine.
The comics produced in the years during, after and leading up to the vietnam war were no different. The best histories of the vietnam war council on foreign. The book vietnam a hist ory of the war is a good showcase of the vietnam war and the events that caused it. Readers weighed in on the best books about the vietnam war. Michael herr was a war correspondent for esquire between 1967 and 1969. More than forty years after it ended, the vietnam war continues to haunt our country. Before being killed in vietnam in 1967, he wrote eight books that many claim are some of the best history books about the french war and the beginnings of the vietnam war. The penguin history of modern vietnam by christopher. The best vietnam war books, as recommended by vietnam war vet karl. The history of vietnam can be traced back to around 4000 years ago.
Jun 14, 2018 before being killed in vietnam in 1967, he wrote eight books that many claim are some of the best history books about the french war and the beginnings of the vietnam war. Purchasing these books through the book depository is a great way for you to save money, while supporting alpha history. Vietnam war protests began small among peace activists and leftist intellectuals on college campuses but gained national prominence in 1965, after the united states began bombing north vietnam. After we posted this article, times readers weighed in with their favorite books on the vietnam war. This intervention would become one of the most divisive decisions in u. History vietnam has a history as rich and evocative as anywhere on the planet. While the list of books about this conflict includes hundreds of enlightening works, we pick ten of the best texts offering illuminating perspectives on the war, its context and the effects it had on vietnam. Jul 04, 2019 post war vietnam was granted admission to the united nations in 1977 but for the first decade of its membership, it was shunned by most western nations. The vietnam war stands as one of the pivotal moments in recent u. Vann retired from the army in 1963 after failing to. Apr, 2018 how the vietnam war created americas modern white power movement read this historians origin story of white power activism in the us. History of laos secret war and the way it transformed. The vietnam war has scarred, transformed and inspired countless writers and art practitioners. Complete organized chaos for the new guys would begin as we landed in vietnam.
The war began soon after the geneva conference provisionally divided 1954 vietnam at 17 n lat. An epic tragedy sits a minute story that captures the essence of the book. Two years after the withdrawal of the last united states combat troops, north vietnamese army nva tanks and soldiers rolled into saigon. Three are novels, two of which were written by vietnam war veterans.
After experimental planning in the 1970s and 1980s, the economy was reformed in a market economy direction. A bright and shining lie, neil sheehan if you ever read just one history of the vietnam war. Critically acclaimed since its release in 1977, dispatches was one of the first books which offered an insiders account of the vietnam war to the general public. These 10 books, in addition to the ones below, were recommended multiple times. Pages in category vietnam war books the following 42 pages are in this category, out of 42 total. There are no pictures too graphic or disturbing for a school library and the viewpoint of the war is neutral, telling the information as it is instead of biased input. After china withdrew from vietnam in 1979, border conflicts continued to occur. Sep 14, 2017 as before, ward has written a weighty companion book to the series. Pbs produced an emmywinning television series, vietnam. An oral history of the vietnam war by black veterans, by.
Galloway, a vietnam war correspondent who was the only civilian to be awarded the bronze star in vietnam, and marvin j. The penguin history of modern vietnam by christopher goscha. In 1975, the us cut diplomatic ties with hanoi after the end of the vietnam war aka the second indochina war, which left more than a million vietnamese and. This superb book documents how the quoc pham family, through their true grit, tenacity, ingenuity, and perseverance, endured years of deprivation and sacrifice to control their own destiny and improve their lot in life. List of books and articles about vietnam war online. Best books on vietnam 194 books meet your next favorite book. In vietnam, the rate of mental breakdowns in soldiers was 1 percent, a massive reduction from the second world war 10 percent. The country sustained a further loss in human capital through the exodus of political refugees from vietnam after the communist victory in the south. One key reason, say doug bradley and craig werner, authors of the book we gotta get out of this place. We would be organized militarily, but we would have to break the bad habit, of trying to fight a conventional war in a guerrilla warfare environment.