First published 2019
Jim O'Connor examines how America became entangled in two decades of fighting in Vietnam. The conflict defined the turbulent 1960s alongside Flower Power and Civil Rights protests. O'Connor traces the decisions of five consecutive US presidents who believed American military force could resolve Vietnam's civil war and prevent Communist expansion across Southeast Asia. Their calculations proved disastrously wrong. The author presents multiple perspectives on this tragic period, explaining the rationale behind American involvement and documenting the enormous human price. Nearly 60,000 American soldiers died in the failed effort. O'Connor shows how military defeat in Vietnam created enduring wounds in the American psyche that persist today.
Genres: history, 20th-century, military-history, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-events, multiple-perspectives
Setting: Vietnam, Southeast Asia
Period: 1960s
112 pages · Paperback · Penguin Workshop
Content warnings: death, war