Sheltons history 5000, historiography, in the fall of 2008. Winner of the 2016 pulitzer prize for fiction, this debut novel could fit into half a dozen genres of. A novel of the vietnam wa r was written by karl marlantes follows the men of bravo company, fifth marine division, and paints a dark picture of war. Feb 05, 2008 a rumor of war, philip caputo to call it the best book about vietnam is to trivialise it. Ward and ken burns deliver the grand historical goods in this feast of a book. In orthodox academic dogma, the vietnam war is a mere subset of 20th century diplomatic history, rather than a main subject of 20th century military history. He chooses the best books on the vietnam war, exploring its moral ambiguities, the warrior mentality, the humanity of the enemy, and more.
A lively introduction and conclusion by editors andrew wiest and. That the so called communists were merely nationalists fighting for national liberation,and we pesky americans got in the way of that battle. The dreadful sacrifice of that earlier war was traumatic, particularly in the view of british historians whose accounts were more familiar histories of the vietnam war are no different. But a glance at the table of contents quickly reveals the real interests of the author and the limitations of the subject matter.
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. One big problem, panelists said, was burns and novicks deliberate exclusion of professional historians from their 80 talking heads. Scholars and historians continue to debate the justification or lack thereof for u. In the short history of vietnam war literature, publishers would hardly touch a book on the war until the late 1970s and early 1980sa part of the selfinduced national amnesia about that conflict and its outcome. Since then i have gathered up quite a collection of books and dvds on the vietnam war or as the vietnamese say the american war. It has attracted an enormous amount of academic attention and. The vietnam war started in the 1950s, according to most historians, though the conflict in southeast asia had its roots in the french colonial period of the 1800s. Since the dawn of recorded history, war has proven an irresistible, inexhaustible and universally appealing subject. Some forty years after american withdrawal from vietnam, the u. Historians question bushs reading of lessons of vietnam war. The best vietnam war books five books expert recommendations. These quotations have been researched, selected and compiled by alpha history authors. They contain statements and remarks about the vietnam conflict by notable political figures, military commanders, contemporaries and historians. Historians battle for the vietnam war, compares the historiography of vietnam to that of world war i.
Sheehan, who covered the vietnam war for the new york times, won the pulitzer prize for chronicling the unusual story of john paul vann. Pages in category historians of the vietnam war the following 34 pages are in this category, out of 34 total. These include winners of national book awards and pulitzer prizes, both fiction and nonfiction. The series editor, michael cox, explains that in the ever increasing tendency to specialize more and more books about smaller and smaller topics are becoming the norm. Why do historians, educators and antiwar groups in the u. Get on the internet, choose a search engine and key in vietnam war.
Photo by brandi redd few american military conflicts of the 20th century were as controversial as the vietnam war. Dec, 2017 in this post, you will find a list of the best vietnam books to read in 2020. Historians at war national association of scholars. Most of the historians make good points in showing areas that burns left out of the series but all of them need to recognize the fact that it wasnt possible for burns to show everything they wanted. A slew of war memoirs stand with the best writing of that genre. Turner, a vietnam veteran and hoover institution fellow who later obtained a nontenured position at the university of virginia law school, disputed the portrayal of the vietnamese communists as devoted nationalists in his book vietnamese communism. The military did not define strategy in the vietnam war. Providing unfiltered accounts from those directly affected by the war, both at home and on the front lines, terkel allows the reader to experience what it truly meant to live through every facet of world war ii. Had washington recog nized vietnam as a war of aggression from the north and not as an insurgency. Vann retired from the army in 1963 after failing to. We asked 50 military historians what they consider the 10 best war books ever written.
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 vietnam war has produced as much literature as w. The conflict over interpretations continues the vietnam war, with the exception of the civil war, was the most divisive conflict in american history. Nov 20, 2017 our special exhibition the vietnam war. The exhibition highlights themes of civic duty, citizenship, and what it means to be patriotic through text, visual aids, and historical objects. April 30,2000, marked the twentyfifth anniversary of the real end of the vietnam war. Anderson, the president of the society for historians of american foreign relations and an orthodox historian of the vietnam war, stated in his 2005 presidential address that revisionists interpret the war based on an uncritical acceptance of american cold war policy rather than analysis of the facts, whereas orthodox historians. In the fiction section, you will find the best books on vietnam war, other vietnam bestseller novels as well as novels set in vietnam. Usa today s bob minzesheimer recommends books by 10 authors. For those old enough to have vietnam flashbacks or battle scars, read it and weep. List of books and articles about vietnam antiwar movement. The best books written by vietnam war veterans offer insight into the war and first hand accounts of their experiences. Like everyone else, historians continue to debate the.
The vietnam war has certainly produced burgeoning scholars and literature. Historians battle for the vietnam war collects critiques of triumph forsaken from both sides of this debate, written by an array of vietnam scholars, cataloguing arguments about how the war should be remembered, how history may be reconstructed, and by whom. Press return, then wait while thousands of matches are brought forward. 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. Aug 20, 2015 there are many books which claim to be definitive histories of the vietnam war. Discover the best vietnam war history in best sellers. American icon studs terkel relives the personal tolls of world war ii through interviews with soldiers, sailors and civilians alike. Taking 30 years to write and drawing on his own experiences as a marine in vietnam, matterhorn. Vietnam war, 19611975 engineering and construction base development in south vietnam, 19651970 1991, by carroll h. I have broken down the best books about vietnam into helpful sections.
As the historian jessica chapman of williams college puts it, the vietnam war was, at its core, a civil war greatly exacerbated by foreign intervention. The vietnam war was a long, costly and divisive conflict that pitted the communist government of north vietnam against south vietnam and its principal ally, the united states. One of the most influential books about vietnam is david halberstams the best and the brightest. During the four years following passage of the tonkin gulf resolution aug. This book that complements the tv series is just epic and deserves its place along with stanley karnow vietnam and neil sheehan a bright shining lie. The ultimate 2020 list of best vietnam books to read. While department of state historians have had to make difficult choices, they believe that the resulting documentary collections provide a solid account of policy decisions by the nixon and ford administrations on the vietnam war and will stimulate additional research on u.
It contains statements and remarks about the vietnam conflict by notable political figures, military commanders, contemporaries and historians. The vietnam war remains the most significant political experience for an entire american generation. How are young historians rewriting the history of vietnam. After sufficient time had elapsed to ease some of the wars psychic wounds, we saw a mini explosion of important books. From actionpacked eyewitness accounts such as guadalcanal diary to devastating holocaust memoirs like the diary of anne frank and night to the thrilling espionage tale of operation mincemeat, world war ii is the subject of some of the most fascinating and influential nonfiction books ever written each year, seemingly dozens of new titles emerge to offer fresh. Andrew wiest, in his introduction to triumph revisited. A discussion of the film documentary the vietnam war during the annual meeting of the american historical association.
Dec 11, 2016 most historians tend to take a procommunist view of the war and claim it was unnecessary. The vietnam war is one of the most controversial and traumatic events in american history. The evidence tends to support the militarys claim that it did not suffer a battlefield defeat in the vietnam war, that its army remained on the offensive, that the fighting men continued to follow. For instance, in the 2004 presidential election, the vietnamera military service of both major candidates turned into a serious campaign issue. Not so much, based on a lively weekend panel called a fateful misunderstanding. Winner of the 2016 pulitzer prize for fiction, this debut novel could fit into half a dozen genres of vietnam war books from war narrative to immigrant story, from mystery to political, from metafiction to historical and even dark comedy. This selection of vietnam war quotations spans the period between world war ii and growing us involvement in vietnam to 1963. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. In the 21st century, americans still bitterly argue about the war. David anderson opens with an essay on the vietnam war s major themes and enduring relevance. The necessary war, michael lind if you only read one book on the vietnam war, this is it.
John dumbrells rethinking the vietnam war 2012 makes a valuable contribution to the series on rethinking world politics. It enriches our understanding of the war in vietnam and by implication, subsequent american commitments, including the war in afghanistan. The historiography of the war given the burgeoning literature devoted to it, the vietnam war is surely a contender with the civil war for the title of americas most studied conflict. In the decade or so after the vietnam war ended, most scholars wrote critically of the united states intervention in indochina.
Among the most positive is an abundance of topnotch books, many written by veterans of the conflict. Most historians tend to take a procommunist view of the war and claim it was unnecessary. Oct 14, 20 john dumbrells rethinking the vietnam war 2012 makes a valuable contribution to the series on rethinking world politics. Jan 09, 2018 not so much, based on a lively weekend panel called a fateful misunderstanding. The book deserves more attention than it has thus far received. Through fifteen essays rooted in recent scholarship, the columbia history of the vietnam war is a chronological and critical collective history central to any discussion of americas interests abroad. Nov 08, 2012 enough books novels and nonfiction have been published about the vietnam war and its aftermath to fill a modestsized library. A rumor of war, philip caputo to call it the best book about vietnam is to trivialise it. Rethinking the vietnam war by john dumbrell springerlink. The history, 19461975, and secrets of the vietnam war. Pages in category vietnam war books the following 42 pages are in this category, out of 42 total.
Aug 23, 2007 many historians disagree with president bushs reference to the vietnam war as a predictor of what might happen in iraq should the united states withdraw. The best histories of the vietnam war council on foreign. Phillip davidsons vietnam at war, for instance, is in truth a study of the big unit confrontations of the johnson and nixon years. Steve bannon was reading it in february 2017, the new york times has reported. These pages contain a selection of vietnam war quotations. The vietnam war was arguably the most traumatic experience for the united states in the twentieth century.
According to the 1960s orthodoxy, revisionist historians are defending a shameful history of u. In the fiction section, you will find the best books on vietnam war, other vietnam bestseller novels as well as novels set in. The vietnam war has scarred, transformed and inspired countless writers and art practitioners. Readers weighed in on the best books about the vietnam war.
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