In my mind its one of the first really wellwritten books that describe the moral ambiguities and difficulties faced by a young marine officer in this particular war. Before he penned the screenplays for jarhead and castaway, a young william broyles enlisted to serve in the vietnam war. This is a great piece of writing and the guy is obviously a talented writer. This book describes their experiences the similarities and the differences and how the pows coped with untreated wounds and other malaises, systematic torture, and boredom. It went on to win a number of prestigious awards, including the pulitzer prize for non fiction, national book award, and the bancroft prize. To order any of these titles, contact the library by email, mail or phone. The life and times of admiral elmo russell bud zumwalt, jr. Nov 08, 2012 enough books novels and nonfiction have been published about the vietnam war and its aftermath to fill a modestsized library. Discover some of the most recommended and best vietnam war books in fiction, nonfiction, and middle grade and childrens literature. From his encounters with exvietnamese soldiers to interviews with victims of his own violence, broyles memoir is a reminder of how the. The ultimate 2020 list of best vietnam books to read. Best nonfiction war books list of most compelling nonfiction books about war.
May 26, 2016 the violence, tragedy, bravery, and loss of the vietnam war has been memorialized in countless novels and works of nonfiction. Five great books about the vietnam war for middle readers. Find below a list of the most popular vietnam travel books. Search results for vietnam sorted by relevance page 1. This intervention would become one of the most divisive decisions in u. The book describes the expatriate life and relations with the local chinese population. Quanah parker and the rise and fall of the comanches, the most powerful indian tribe in american history. The story of vietnam from ancient past to uncertain future. Anyway, there was huge number of books running the gamut of extreme politics to bourgeoise politics, cooking, diet, novels, history, selfhelp ad. The book includes some great observations and agonizing human truths about the nonstop combat of the war. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. From americas conflictswwi, wwii, korea, vietnam and iraqto her mountains, rivers and people, hellgate press has just the book for you. Dog soldiers won the 1975 national book award for fiction, the first vietnam war novel to do so.
Enough books novels and nonfiction have been published about the vietnam war and its aftermath to fill a modestsized library. It follows with his stories of hardship in the camps, going into significant detail about daily routines, assigned labour responsibilities, layout and organization of the camp, treatment by prison guards, and living conditions. Featured in the book are fellow war correspondents sean. Buy vietnam war nonfiction books and get the best deals at the lowest prices on ebay. While the list of books about this conflict includes hundreds of enlightening works, we pick ten of the best texts offering illuminating perspectives on. Freedman takes readers through the beginning of the conflict in the region through the major turning points in the war, and ends with an epilogue about vietnam today. Nonfiction updated december 2006 a war story is good, but sometimes nonfiction can be more interesting, as in these true vietnam war stories, compiled by reader advisor paul mathews. Great savings free delivery collection on many items. Vietnam war nonfiction for detailed ordering information, see link on our main page.
Vietnam war nonfiction missouri secretary of state. Not only one of the best books about the vietnam war, but one of the best nonfiction books written by an american. From the awardwinning historian and filmmakers of the civil war, baseball, the war, the roosevelts, and others. From the firsthand accounts of onsite doctors to novels about soldiers on the frontlines, the. The violence, tragedy, bravery, and loss of the vietnam war has been memorialized in countless novels and works of nonfiction. Fields of fire is a brilliant book about the vietnam war. Banned in vietnam, duon thu huongs powerful novel offers an entirely different perspective from what much of american literature and film.
For those of you planning to travel to vietnam i have included my choice of the best vietnam travel guide book into the relevant section as well as a cookbook for those who enjoy vietnamese cuisine. Booktopia buy vietnam war books online from australias leading online bookstore. Nonfiction updated december 2006 a war story is good, but sometimes non fiction can be more interesting, as in these true vietnam war stories, compiled by reader advisor paul mathews. Together they survived ambush, kidnapping, entrapment, and more. Vietnam war nonfiction books for sale in stock ebay. Among the most positive is an abundance of topnotch books, many written by veterans of the conflict. Daniel ellsberg and the secret history of the vietnam war bccb blue ribbon nonfiction book award awards things ill never forget. John paul vann and america in vietnam 1988 is a book by neil sheehan, a former new york times reporter, about u. 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.
Army lieutenant colonel john paul vann killed in action and the united states involvement in the vietnam war sheehan was awarded the 1988 national book award for nonfiction and the 1989 pulitzer prize for general nonfiction for the. Authored by journalist frances fitzgerald, this account of vietnam, its history, and the effects of its war with the united states was on the bestseller list for more than ten weeks. An oral history of the vietnam war by black veterans by wallace terry. In this latest work, nonfiction author freedman accomplishes the difficult task of contextualizing for middle graders one of americas most confusing and fraught wars.
What struck me about it is the similarity of the feeling between people who just by the grace of god, by luck, were on. Hellgate press a leading independent publisher of books. The author was a government engineer and became involved in the corruption common at that time. Mar 06, 2015 dog soldiers won the 1975 national book award for fiction, the first vietnam war novel to do so. The necessary war, michael lind if you only read one book on the vietnam war, this is it. Get cozy and expand your home library with a large online selection of books at. If you want gripping, true action of ww2, read last battle station, if you can find it, about one of the greatest, rarely told battles of ww2, the battle of java sea, the story of the uss hous. Dec 19, 2014 i have read literally 100s of books on these topics. What is a good recommendation for a nonfiction book on. Jun 14, 2018 authored by journalist frances fitzgerald, this account of vietnam, its history, and the effects of its war with the united states was on the bestseller list for more than ten weeks. The top 30 vietnam war books to read this winter historynet.
More than forty years after it ended, the vietnam war continues to haunt our country. First published in 1977, dispatches was one of the first pieces of american literature that portrayed the experiences of soldiers in the vietnam war for american readers. Indeed, the rise and fall of this alliance is one of the most crucial developments in the history of the cold war in. Listen to thousands of best sellers and new releases on your iphone, ipad, or android. There are an extraordinary number of works both fiction and nonfiction that seek to understand the impact of the war or simply excise the longfestering wounds. The events of the book are set in hong kong during the vietnam war. The 14 best military nonfiction books of alltime americas. In this post i have divided the books into different sections. Herr commands one of the great voices in american literature, and is so overwhelming, so powerful, that he can, like hemingway, wreak havoc on the style of wouldbe writers who would fall under his spell. I was two years old and had been born into the antivietnam war movement. What is a good recommendation for a nonfiction book on wwii. The vietnam war has scarred, transformed and inspired countless writers and art practitioners.
In a fight to reunify their divided country under communist rule, the north vietnamese rebelled against the anticommunist southwhich included their longtime enemies, the french. Dec 05, 2015 the definitive expose on why america lost the war, won the pulitzer prize for non fiction in 1989. Anyway, there was huge number of books running the gamut of extreme politics to bourgeoise politics, cooking, diet, novels, history, selfhelp ad nauseum and also plenty of bricabrac. Next on your list of vietnam war books is one written from the perspective of the viet cong. Hellgate press offers you the best in books about the military, including military history, veteran memoirs and military fictionas well as nonfiction adventure travel and historicaladventure fiction. These books will all help you as you plan your vietnam holiday. I was seven when pol pot was toppled a few years later, and the ghastly images of the. Philip caputo was a marine who later became a very wellknown journalist. This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and if not signed in for advertising.
A slew of war memoirs stand with the best writing of that genre. The first part describes the authors life before the war began in paris, france and in vietnam. Tell me about the first book on your list, a rumor of war 1977. Nonfiction an intimate history of killing by joanna bourke. Search results for vietnam war download free fiction. The powerful words in these eleven books help us understand a complicated time in our recent history, and the political and personal legacy that it still carries. Books on librarything tagged vietnam war nonfiction. Browse history military vietnam war ebooks to read online or download in epub or pdf format on your mobile device and pc. A rumor of war, philip caputo to call it the best book about vietnam is to trivialise it. The best vietnam war books five books expert recommendations. Usa today s bob minzesheimer recommends books by 10 authors. Halberstam, who was a vietnam war correspondent for the new york times.
You may also request these titles online through our opac. The girl in the picture 2001, penguin, reissue by denise chong one of the most enduring photos from the vietnam war was of kim phuc as a little girl running naked and screaming from a napalm attack on her village. The book looks at unformed men through a manmade hell, following along with their journey until eventually, they face their fate. Now that ken burns pbs documentary has concluded, were rereading the classics of the vietnam wars literary canon. Ia drang the battle that changed the war in vietnam harold g. Shortlisted for canadas prestigious giller prize, this profoundly humane novel vancouver sun, wrings suspense and humor out of the everyday choices we make, revealing the delicate balance between sacrifice and selfinterest, doing good and being good. We also suggest you take them along on your trip as they can be so beneficial when you get lost, or when you try to find activities to fill in spare time in a day. These include winners of national book awards and pulitzer prizes, both fiction and nonfiction. The th valley by john del vecchio there have been a number of excellent books about vietnam. It went on to win a number of prestigious awards, including the pulitzer prize for nonfiction, national book award, and the bancroft prize. I have read literally 100s of books on these topics. Readers weighed in on the best books about the vietnam war. My top 10 fiction and nonfiction books to read on vietnam.
Discover the best vietnam war history in best sellers. Dispatches is a new journalism book by michael herr that describes the authors experiences in vietnam as a war correspondent for esquire magazine. Ten vietnam war novels to read council on foreign relations. The definitive collection of fiction and nonfiction on the war 1998 by stewart onan. More than a decade later, he returned to his former battlegrounds and recorded his journey in goodbye vietnam. A narrative of vietnam era pows on the time spent in captivity in the jungles of the south, or the jails of the north.