Mark Atwood Lawrence

This is the first book about the Vietnam war that I've read. It. Is. Awesome. I don't think there's a wasted word in the 185 pp of narrative. It seems to be an almost comprehensive overview of major internal and external political interests, calculations, and decisions made by major participant and influential nations. It gave me a clearer understanding of the USA's political trends of the day, which was especially interesting in comparison to today's.

What I especially liked was the frequency with which Lawrence provided summary syntheses. There were several instances when, after several pages detailing various interests, tensions, and events, I would find myself trying to synthesize it all—and then, bam! Within a page there would be a paragraph that did exactly that.

What it is not, is a tactical or strategic military history of the war. Military operations are discussed only as they relate to the political context. War crimes are acknowledged but not really treated; the non-combat operations of both sides in South Vietnam aren't described in much detail and the main point of such description as there is, is that being a South Vietnamese peasant pretty much sucked regardless of which side had local control.… (more)