In Vietnam

A well researched and easy to read history of this fascinating country. It is such a pity that the French and Americans who in their arrogance gave themselves the right to dominate this small country had not better understood the history and character of the Vietnamese, as presented in this book. If they had, perhaps hundreds of thousands of lives may not have been lost or destroyed ill-conceived quests to dominate this land. I read this book in one sitting, such was its appeal. The one small criticism is the innumerable typos that appear throughout.

Very interesting and informative book. I enjoyed reading it immensely. I do, however, have to point out an error on page 83 in the caption of the photo. The "freighter" in the photo is actually HMAS Sydney, which was converted from an aircraft carrier to a fast troop transport by the Royal Australian Navy.
This ship mainly carried troops to Vietnam and was lovingly known as The Vung Tau Ferry by the numerous ships companies who served in her. (You don't serve on a ship, you serve in it - the same way you live in a house, not on it.)
S J Riley
Ex-RAN R65744

Interesting read. I like Paul Ham's Vietnam an unable to put down its brilliant and also excellent reference book. This current viewpoint is looking at the Vietnam war from a differing perspective