Last summer at a family cookout, I noticed my uncle who had served in the Vietnam War, wearing a baseball cap which indicated that he was a veteran of the conflict. It was the first time I had seen him wear anything connected to Vietnam or the military. As I watched him, I asked myself why it took so long for Vietnam veterans to find acceptance and peace. He is from a generation which fought in a deeply unpopular war that saw America fall short of its stated goal. The official policy was to help South Vietnam withstand communism and survive as its own democratic republic but the reality on the ground was far more complicated. The truth about South Vietnam is a bitter pill to swallow but necessary in understanding the failures which took place. Author and Pulitzer Prize winner Frances Fitzgerald originally wrote this book in 1971 and it was published in 1972, three years before the conflict’s end. But contained in its pages is an insightful discussion about Vietnamese history, French colonialism, and America’s entry into Indochina. And having finished the book, I can say with certainty that it is one the best books I have ever read about the war in Vietnam. 

Fitzgerald did not serve in the military and the book is not written from a soldier’s point of view. Her focus is on South Vietnam, particularly the instability of its government and the complex social structure in Vietnam which western minds struggled to understand. The book excels is explaining how and why the Vietnamese lived as they did. These lessons seemed to have been lost to officials as the conflict heated up. Readers do not need prior knowledge of the war to find value in this book. In fact, no prior knowledge is needed. Fitzgerald covers the country’s history, the French occupation, and the buildup to American intervention. Her narrative is smooth and flows  beautifully, which makes the book easy to read and engaging from start to finish. 

I have read and reviewed several books on Vietnam, each with its own approach to the war. But the book I found to be the closest in comparison to this discussion by Fitzgerald is Fredrik Logevall’s ‘Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s Vietnam‘, which I strongly recommend for anyone interested in the war’s history. However, I believe Fitzgerald’s account in regard to South Vietnam is absolute gold. And the nexus of President Ngo Dinh Diem (1901-1963), brother Ngo Dinh Nhu (1910-1963) and sister-in-law Madame Nhu (Trần Lệ Xuân)(1924-2011) is explored thoroughly in one of the most thorough explanations I have read.  This trifecta of power would affect Vietnam in many ways and haunt the American effort in the years that followed their removal from power in 1963. But this was no secret in Washington as we see in the book. Readers may also want to take a look at the book by former Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara (1916-2009) ‘In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam‘, which is a fair analysis of the failures by officials in handling the conflict. McNamara is seen as a villain by some, and the war’s chief architect by others. His role and errors are discussions for another time, but his book is still a valuable source of information. 

Prior to American troops landing in Vietnam, warnings had been issued by both foreign governments and the United States intelligence apparatus. A young and well-traveled senator from Massachusetts named John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) was convinced that a war in Indochina was a disaster, but he would be forced to confront the matter himself when he was elected to the presidency in 1960. But despite numerous warnings, the stage was set in the wake of the Gulf of Tonkin incident in August 1964. President Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973) asked for and received congressional authority to use military force in Vietnam.  In four years, the war became an “albatross” around his neck and played a significant role in his decision not to seek or accept the Democratic nomination for the 1968 presidential election. In Vietnam, American military commanders continued to face an enemy encouraged by deception and a mindset that seemed inexplicable to the west. And added to the mix is the National Liberation Front (“NLF”) whose goal was to remove the Diem regime from power and seek reunification with North Vietnam. As I read, I found my view of the conflict changing as I understood more about the NLF and the dislike of the Diem regime. Further, the author highlights the degradation of Vietnamese society due to its American occupiers. This part of the book may be difficult for some to accept, but what the author discusses is crucial in understanding why South Vietnam could never stand on its own. 

As the war rages on, American officials and military commanders are forced to accept uncomfortable truths. Publicly, the belief in American victory remained strong, but behind closed doors, Washington knew that the war was not going as planned and victory not as certain as one would believe. And the Tet Offensive in January 1968, was a sobering wake up call for anyone who assumed the war would be over soon. Fitzgerald discusses the offensive and its impact here as well, and she also pulls no punches regarding American atrocities in Vietnam. The war had turned Indochina into hell, and she drives home the point that instead of liberating South Vietnam, America flipped it upside down in ways which officials had not anticipated. The Vietnamese people had their lives upended for a cause which many of them had no strong feeling in support of.

Following Johnson’s decision not to see re-election in 1968, a new president arrives and inherits the war in Vietnam. The administration of Richard M. Nixon (1913-1994) would have its own difficulties with the raging infernor which he pledged to bring to an end. But he would soon find out that doing so was far more difficult than that implied. The war’s expansion into neighboring Cambodia set off alarm bells and revealed the uncomfortable truth that the nightmare in Vietnam was far from over. The heartbreaking saga plays out in the book but ends in 1971 when Fitzgerald finishes her analysis. Hauntingly, her words proved to be prophetic and the departure of American forces in 1975 was confirmation that without permanent U.S. involvement, reunification was bound to happen. 

After I finished the book, I sat silently for a few minutes thinking about the war and its many casualties. I thought of my uncle who carries scars from the war, both physically and mentally. In a rare moment of admission, he once told me that people asked him why he had answered his draft call. He never wanted to go to Vietnam but did not have the money or connections to avoid being called to serve. So, he took his draft card and arrived at his assigned location. And several months later, he found himself three thousand miles away in a country he had never seen to fight in a war he wanted no part of. And that is the story of many Vietnam veterans who are still with us today. I can only hope that they receive the acknowledgment and acceptance they have not always been given. If you are a student of the Vietnam War, you will appreciate this book. 

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0028MM2MM
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown and Company (May 5, 2009)