The Vietnam War cover art

The Vietnam War

An Intimate History

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The Vietnam War

By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
Narrated by: Brian Corrigan, Fred Sanders, Ken Burns
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About this listen

 From the award-winning historian and filmmakers of The Civil War, Baseball, The War, The Roosevelts, and others: a vivid, uniquely powerful history of the conflict that tore America apart--the companion volume to the major, multipart PBS film to be aired in September 2017.

More than forty years after it ended, the Vietnam War continues to haunt our country. We still argue over why we were there, whether we could have won, and who was right and wrong in their response to the conflict. When the war divided the country, it created deep political fault lines that continue to divide us today. Now, continuing in the tradition of their critically acclaimed collaborations, the authors draw on dozens and dozens of interviews in America and Vietnam to give us the perspectives of people involved at all levels of the war: U.S. and Vietnamese soldiers and their families, high-level officials in America and Vietnam, antiwar protestors, POWs, and many more. The book plunges us into the chaos and intensity of combat, even as it explains the rationale that got us into Vietnam and kept us there for so many years. Rather than taking sides, the book seeks to understand why the war happened the way it did, and to clarify its complicated legacy. Beautifully written and richly illustrated, this is a tour de force that is certain to launch a new national conversation.


Read by Brian Corrigan with Fred Sanders, and with an introduction read by Ken Burns Americas Military United States War Vietnam War Imperial Japan Roosevelt Family Thought-Provoking Emotionally Gripping Inspiring China Imperialism Soviet Union Socialism Social justice Air Force

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Critic reviews

"The companion volume to Burns’ Vietnam War documentary series on PBS, the book stands alone as a powerful summary of the whole conflict. It tells the story of the war from every conceivable angle, including that of the young Vietnamese fighters. It’s extraordinarily well-reported and written, and filled with memorable photographs and illustrations—a reminder that the war was, perhaps for the first time, shaped as much by powerful images as written reports."
—Lancaster Online, Mark Bowden's "Ten Favorite Books on the Vietnam War"

"A vivid and often captivating volume…a valuable resource."
—David Greenberg, The New York Times Book Review

"Once again Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns deliver the grand historical goods in this feast of a book. For those too young to remember the Vietnam War, this is the essential primer. For those old enough to have Vietnam flashbacks or battle scars, read it and weep. Highly recommended!!"
—Douglas Brinkley

"A sweeping, richly illustrated narrative of a conflict fast retreating in memory... As they have done in numerous collaborations, Ward and Burns take a vast topic and personalize it... Of particular value is the inclusion of Vietnamese voices on both sides of the conflict, most of whom agree more than four decades later that the question of who won or lost is less important than the fact that no one really prevailed... The text is accompanied by more than 500 photographs, some of them immediately recognizable...many others fresh... Accompanying the PBS series to be aired in September 2017, this is an outstanding, indispensable survey of the Vietnam War."
—Kirkus, (starred review)

"Lucid, flowing, and dramatic… Robustly detailed writing… Eye-opening… Powerful in its own right… In their new ‘intimate’ yet capacious history, the award-winning, audience-enthralling duo of historian and screenwriter Ward and documentarian extraordinaire Burns investigate the complex, divisive, and tragic Vietnam War from a unique plurality of perspectives… This is a vivid, affecting, definitive, and essential illustrated history."
—Donna Seaman, Booklist (starred review)

"Lavishly illustrated…. Well-written and deeply researched, this history covers virtually every aspect of the French and American wars in Vietnam from 1945-1975, focusing mainly on military, diplomatic, and political issues…. Anyone looking for an expansive overview of the Vietnam War will find much to admire here."
—Publishers Weekly
All stars
Most relevant
This is a must listen account of the Vietnam War told through the people who made and experienced it. The complexities of its beginning are clearly explained and the futility of the military actions revealed. However the it's the interweaving of secret records, personal accounts, verbatim conversations

Stunning account of Vietnam War

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You may think you understand about the Vietnam war. You don't. I implore to read this book and understand why.

One of the best, most balanced books I have read

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For such an epic project whispersync was needed and missed.

Very thorough though. Well researched and lit together

WhisperSync?

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fantastic insight into the Vietnam War from begins to final collapse with both sides of the story told in great detail with personal stories of participants and those who were there but necessarily involved in the conflict. The audio book is in my opinion better than the film documentary which also watched - the book deals with more detail; however, I would recommend that both versions be considered as you can see visually what much of the audio content is describing.

Factual, unbiased, and certainly the most accurate account I have yet to come across on the War; and explains where mistakes were made on both the French, American and Vietnamese sides; and how the peace movement influenced the final outcome; and the book ultimately explains the tragedy that befell the South on the communist take-over with its unimaginable human and economic cost.

Five stars = must listen to.

audio book better than documentary film

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As someone who didn't really know much about the Vietnam war, I found this book insightful and poignant. Using different points of view, from both sides, the book takes you on a journey through the Vietnam War, the reasons behind it, the action on the ground and it's end. I found the use of first hand accounts from both sides really moving, bringing to life the impact of the war on the people involved. The narration is excellent. Highly recommend.

A moving and eye opening exploration

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