Book Reviews

Each of these Vietnam War book reviews is based upon books that I have personally read, or else reviews that have been submitted by other book readers. In writing the reviews, opinions are, of course, personal and subjective and you may not agree with some of them. However, whether you agree or disagree with the views expressed, please feel free to submit your own reviews of the same or different books since I welcome and encourage your submissions.

Please note that where an ISBN number and publisher is given, this is the ISBN and publisher of my own edition and may differ depending on whether a US or UK edition is purchased.

Declaration of Interest - Amazon.com

Each review is accompanied by a link directly to the relevant page at Amazon.com should you wish to purchase the book for yourself. I have an associates account with Amazon and use the earnings from this to add books to my own Vietnam War library (and hence my list of reviewed books) and to meet the ongoing costs of maintaining this site. By purchasing your copy of the book directly via these links (or any other book whilst on Amazon.com) you help to contribute to this site. Thanks.

We Were Soldiers Once & Young

Rarely in military history does an army achieve amazing victory and suffer humiliating defeat in the course of a single battle fought at sites no more than 2 miles apart. This brilliant book details just such an event...

Lt.Gen. Harold G. Moore (Ret.) and Joseph L. Galloway, Published by Random House 1992, ISBN 1853105023.

We Were Soldiers Once and Young - Reviewed by MikeR.

Summons of the Trumpet

Palmer’s book is an attempt to explain the background to the political machinations surrounding the war and gives an insight into the political battle of wills being waged in both Hanoi and Washington. Whereas the US soldier beat the enemy on the ground in almost all instances, the reverse is true in the political arena where Ho Chi Minh and his politicians ran the US ragged...

Dave R. Palmer, Published by Presidio Press, 1995, ISBN 0891415505.

Summons of the Trumpet - Reviewed by MikeR.

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Dispatches

Released to tremendous and universal critical acclaim, Michael Herr's' Dispatches has become almost a literary icon for the war in Vietnam. The book is a kaleidoscopic account of Herr's time in Vietnam as an independent reporter of the war. Michael Herr writes with a style which is almost helter-skelter in it's use of rapid, quick firing images...

Michael Herr, Published by Pan Books 1978, ISBN 0330255738.

Dispatches - Reviewed by MikeR.

The Rise and Fall of an American Army

The book chronicles the build up, deployment and eventual withdrawal of United States Ground Forces over the years 1965 to 1973. The author examines the overall strategic background for the period covered and the activities which took place throughout the various regions of the country. Regularly interspersed throughout the book are dramatic accounts of actual combat which give life to the bones of the narrative...

Shelby Stanton, Published by Spa Books 1989, ISBN 0-907590-26-8.

The Rise and Fall of an American Army - Reviewed by MikeR.

War Sories of the Green Berets

War Stories of the Green Berets is a compendium of war stories, some hilarious, some heroic, and others sad, as told to Halberstadt by 26 men who served in Vietnam with US Army Special Forces. Halberstadt served in Vietnam as a doorgunner and got to know some of the men in this book. The men doing the storytelling are the real thing and represent the whole range of the Special Forces experience in Vietnam...

Hans Halberstadt, Published by Zenith Press, 1994, ISBN 0879389559.

War Sories of the Green Berets - Reviewed by Rob Krott.

A Lonely Kind of War: Forward Air Controller Vietnam

A Lonely Kind of War is a real treasure. Not only does the author describe the technical aspects of his war in a clear and concise manner but he also conveys the humour and absurdities of service life in a way that will appeal to both the service and civilian reader. The author, Marshall Harrison, is that rare breed, a serviceman who can not only tell a good story but also put it down in writing...

Marshall Harrison, Published by Presidio Press, ISBN 0891413529.

A Lonely Kind of War: Forward Air Controller Vietnam - Reviewed by Barrie Lovell.