Robert Timberg weaves together the lives of Annapolis graduates John McCain, James Webb, Oliver North, Robert McFarlane, and John Poindexter to reveal how the Vietnam War continues to haunt America. Casting all five men as metaphors for a legion of well-meaning if ill-starred warriors, Timberg probes the fault line between those who fought the war and those who used money, wit, and connections to avoid battle. A riveting tale that illuminates the...

The Vietnam War is largely recalled as a mistake, either in the decision to engage there or in the nature of the engagement. Or both. Veterans of the war remain largely anonymous figures, accomplices in the mistake. Critically recounting the steps that led to the war, this book does not excuse the mistakes, but it brings those who served out of the shadows. Enduring Vietnam recounts the experiences of the young Americans who fought in Vietnam and...

This book is based on 500 interviews with men and women who came of age in the 1960s and 1970s. Some went to Vietnam, some did not. We hear from protesters, exiles, deserters, men who mutilated and starved to avoid the draft, soldiers, nurses, wives, lovers and others who still fight daily the terrible legacy of post-traumatic stress. The book holds a poignant message for a nation which, once again, contemplates sending its sons to war in the Middle...

"This book details major events of the Vietnam War, as well as the war's cultural impact"--Provided by publisher.

"Very few of the many books about the Vietnam War fully address why the fighting was conducted in such a cruel manner, why it was prolonged far past its logical end, or what, ultimately, went wrong. American literature has been reluctant to emphasize the fact that between 3.5 and 5 million Southeast Asians died-many of them peasants-that the majority of the bombs dropped from American planes landed on South Vietnam-our ally and an impoverished agricultural...

"The Vietnam War is largely recalled as a mistake, either in the decision to engage there or in the nature of the engagement. Or both. Veterans of the war remain largely anonymous figures, accomplices in the mistake. Critically recounting the steps that led to the war, this book does not excuse the mistakes, but it brings those who served out of the shadows. Enduring Vietnam recounts the experiences of the young Americans who fought in Vietnam and...