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The Vietnam War: A Concise International History
The Vietnam War remains a topic of extraordinary interest, not least because of striking parallels between that conflict and more recent fighting in the Middle East. In The Vietnam War, Mark Atwood Lawrence draws upon the latest research in archives around the world to offer readers a superb account of a key moment in U.S. as well as global history. While focusing on American involvement between 1965 and 1975, Lawrence offers an unprecedentedly complete picture of all sides of the war, notably by examining the motives that drove the Vietnamese communists and their foreign allies. Moreover, the book carefully considers both the long- and short-term origins of the war. Lawrence examines the rise of Vietnamese communism in the early twentieth century and reveals how Cold War anxieties of the 1940s and 1950s set the United States on the road to intervention. Of course, the heart of the book covers the "American war," ranging from the overthrow of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem to the impact of the Tet Offensive on American public opinion, Lyndon Johnson's withdrawal from the 1968 presidential race, Richard Nixon's expansion of the war into Cambodia and Laos, and the problematic peace agreement of 1973, which ended American military involvement. Finally, the book explores the complex aftermath of the war--its enduring legacy in American books, film, and political debate, as well as Vietnam's struggles with severe social and economic problems. A compact and authoritative primer on an intensely relevant topic, this well-researched and engaging volume offers an invaluable overview of the Vietnam War.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 4, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
March 10, 2018
I really appreciate this book. It asks and answers some questions about this war that I had not realized but that are important to understanding this great frustration of our nation. It paints in clear tones the forces, fears and ambitions that shaped this war. My husband thought it was dry but I found it concise and clear. I was looking to be more knowledgeable not necessarily emotionally moved or entertained though.
January 22, 2021
A great place to start when learning about the Vietnam War. Lawrence faithfully provides historical context, political nuance, and a variety of perspectives. I would recommend the audiobook since the writing is a bit dense.
February 26, 2024
simultaneously thorough and to the point, a great reference for discussion posts lol
it struck a balance by examining the American role within a broadly international context, and emphasis on the U.S.' role makes sense given the significance of the controversies centering on American decision making
it struck a balance by examining the American role within a broadly international context, and emphasis on the U.S.' role makes sense given the significance of the controversies centering on American decision making
March 13, 2022
A multi-causal explanation of why the Vietnam War unfolded as it did: Domestic politics of US, Sino-Soviet split, a discordant western alliance, fear of Communism, all contributed to the prolonged imperialist massacre and eventually the revolutionary victory of the Vietnamese people.
But Lawrence's account has its shortcomings: The author's conception of "international" seems to be merely limited to the main actors of the war such as France, US, Vietnam, USSR and China. The war however, pushed many other buttons among the non-state actors in many parts of the world from guerrilla movements to scholars. Salvadoran guerrillas, for one, frequently visited the Vietnamese diplomats and military officials who provided them with advice, training and military equipment. During the Tricontinental years, Cuban revolutionaries mobilised the anger the Vietnam War caused to pull the Non-Aligned Countries closer to an anti-imperialist line. One of the highlights of the rise of the revolutionary movement in Turkey was the moment when the revolutionaries set on fire the automobile of the US diplomat Robert Komer, nicknamed "The executioner of Vietnam".
Although it is a well-written book with a balanced view regarding the causes of this prolonged war, it was much too US-centric for my taste.
But Lawrence's account has its shortcomings: The author's conception of "international" seems to be merely limited to the main actors of the war such as France, US, Vietnam, USSR and China. The war however, pushed many other buttons among the non-state actors in many parts of the world from guerrilla movements to scholars. Salvadoran guerrillas, for one, frequently visited the Vietnamese diplomats and military officials who provided them with advice, training and military equipment. During the Tricontinental years, Cuban revolutionaries mobilised the anger the Vietnam War caused to pull the Non-Aligned Countries closer to an anti-imperialist line. One of the highlights of the rise of the revolutionary movement in Turkey was the moment when the revolutionaries set on fire the automobile of the US diplomat Robert Komer, nicknamed "The executioner of Vietnam".
Although it is a well-written book with a balanced view regarding the causes of this prolonged war, it was much too US-centric for my taste.
January 9, 2026
Cet ouvrage traite des guerres qu’ont subies les Vietnamiens du fait de la puissance coloniale française puis de la puissance américaine menant sa lutte contre le communisme jusqu’au Vietnam. Il s’agit d’une bonne introduction pour comprendre la chronologie de ces guerres, le rôle des différentes parties prenantes et surtout l’ingérence et la responsabilité de la France et des Etats-Unis dans la survenance de ces conflits et leur prolongation. De ce fait, le livre et très américano-centré, mais ce n’est pas si étonnant pour une guerre communément appelée the American War par les Vietnamiens.
May 27, 2021
• Read for class. This book is a great introduction to the Vietnam War, but it focuses more on the American perspective of things than on the South Vietnamese/North Vietnamese perspective.
January 20, 2022
More concise and with better narrative flow than Herring’s “Longest War,” I appreciated the emphasis on anecdotes and illustrative quotes manifest throughout Lawrence’s work. He asks great questions and leaves the reader with the right tools to begin to work out their own theses on the complex causes and legacies of the war, both in America and in Vietnam.
May 17, 2023
Oorlog blijkt stom idee
April 23, 2021
Barely international. More often than not astoundingly partial (that is, focused on the perspectives and events within the US) and at times very confusing and inconsistent with its terminology on actors/parties involved. All in all, it seems to perpetuate the myth that the Vietnam War was an anomolous war of aggression that had no reason to have been fought, instead of exploring the colonial and imperial nature of the US's intent which sought to further extract value from Viet Nam.
May 15, 2018
This book is good as a starting point for anyone more interested in the Vietnam War or who didn't think that their American History class covered enough.
Don't go in expecting details and specifics in regards to many battles and policies. The book is less than 200 pages long. It's "international" in the sense that it tries to show perspectives from Vietnam, China, Laos, and Cambodia, but overall it definitely still has an American slant.
I do like that a good chunk is spent on the decades before the US ground deployment. What it also does well is make broad arguments that are backed up by specific quotes, usually from politicians or soldiers fighting for either side. It's similar to "The Vietnam War" documentary series by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick. Sometimes, the book gives more detail on certain events, in other places the documentaries do.
Don't go in expecting details and specifics in regards to many battles and policies. The book is less than 200 pages long. It's "international" in the sense that it tries to show perspectives from Vietnam, China, Laos, and Cambodia, but overall it definitely still has an American slant.
I do like that a good chunk is spent on the decades before the US ground deployment. What it also does well is make broad arguments that are backed up by specific quotes, usually from politicians or soldiers fighting for either side. It's similar to "The Vietnam War" documentary series by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick. Sometimes, the book gives more detail on certain events, in other places the documentaries do.
November 12, 2019
Having read this and The New Deal: The Depression Years, 1933-40 in a short time I begin to believe the message of History is "nothing matters, nothing happens, every effort is futile, and Americans are irredeemably horrible people." Whether I mean History as an academic discipline or as the actual thing that that discipline studies, I am not sure. But the sense, in old-fashioned history books I've read, that there is some causal connection between actions and outcomes, that humans can affect their own history -- I don't mean "one person with a dream", I don't mean "the masses", I don't mean "Great Men", I mean anything human at all: governments, international relations, anything -- is totally absent. You can, for example, rain down literal millions of bombs, napalm, Agent Orange, all to try to stop a small and poor nation from sending more and more troops south, and somehow nothing happens. The number of troops is somehow limitless, the damage always repairable. The objectives you are attempting to reach are impossible to accomplish. The only effect is on individual people, and those effects are only hideous and brutal, death or dismemberment or starvation or PTSD or birth defects, etc. From the other side, you can be completely unified and disciplined, and pour every effort into defeating a divided and unpopular government with no support, and also accomplish nothing. The Tet and Easter Offensives were as pointless and futile as Operation Rolling Thunder and the Christmas Bombing. And on the third side, you can mass thousands, then millions, of antiwar protesters and dominate the entire pop culture media landscape and still accomplish absolutely nothing. Leaders completely ignore you except to sic the CIA and FBI on you, and the mass of Americans (who, for reasons I will never understand, felt "fighting communism" was the most important political issue of the day) do not support you. Supposedly LBJ was driven out of office by the unpopularity of the war; but it is a strange way to show it by electing fucking Richard Nixon, twice, and the second time by a huge margin.
Unfortunately, I don't feel as though I learned anything new about the war here. The hope was to get more knowledge of specifics about the course of the war, as opposed to the poetic, personal pop-culture version from Apocalypse Now to Forrest Gump. But if anything the view of the war as an unchanging, unmoving state of futility and death was only reinforced; it doesn't seem as though there were any "stages" to the war or any changes. Both sides just kept doing the same thing for decades and finally the people who didn't live there left. Maybe that is simply the truth. In any case, not a very interesting or satisfying read.
Unfortunately, I don't feel as though I learned anything new about the war here. The hope was to get more knowledge of specifics about the course of the war, as opposed to the poetic, personal pop-culture version from Apocalypse Now to Forrest Gump. But if anything the view of the war as an unchanging, unmoving state of futility and death was only reinforced; it doesn't seem as though there were any "stages" to the war or any changes. Both sides just kept doing the same thing for decades and finally the people who didn't live there left. Maybe that is simply the truth. In any case, not a very interesting or satisfying read.
August 8, 2019
This is probably the best one-volume history of the Vietnam War currently available, and the best introduction to the topic.
The most important shift in the study of the Vietnam War in the last 20-odd years has been the opening of an international perspective. Early accounts used American sources (Vietnamese archives didn't begin to open until the late 1980s), and focused on American actions. Lawrence's book draws on recent research in Vietnamese, Chinese, Soviet, British, and French archives to place the war in its international context.
Lawrence's style is simple and clear, avoiding the polemical tone that marks many books on Vietnam. The narrative is even-handed; Lawrence makes it clear that the conflicts in Indochina were brutal and morally muddy, lacking clear-cut heroes and villains. This is a refreshing contrast from other surveys like Marilyn Young's "The Vietnam Wars," which offers a rosy view of the NLF, or Michael Lind's "The Necessary War," which caricatures the North Vietnamese as lackeys of Moscow or Beijing.
Lawrence's short account is surprisingly comprehensive. While the bulk of the book focuses on the "American war" from 1965-73, early chapters offer a clear, short summary of early Vietnamese history and French colonization. The final chapter, which addresses the aftermath of the war both in the US and Vietnam, helps explain why the conflict still matters (one minor gripe: I would have loved for Lawrence to extend the international perspective to address war memory in other countries involved in the war, like South Korea, China, or Australia).
A short account like this, inevitably, will read like a textbook. But that's OK: you can read this book in a day, and an excellent bibliographic essay at the end is an entry point for further reading.
The most important shift in the study of the Vietnam War in the last 20-odd years has been the opening of an international perspective. Early accounts used American sources (Vietnamese archives didn't begin to open until the late 1980s), and focused on American actions. Lawrence's book draws on recent research in Vietnamese, Chinese, Soviet, British, and French archives to place the war in its international context.
Lawrence's style is simple and clear, avoiding the polemical tone that marks many books on Vietnam. The narrative is even-handed; Lawrence makes it clear that the conflicts in Indochina were brutal and morally muddy, lacking clear-cut heroes and villains. This is a refreshing contrast from other surveys like Marilyn Young's "The Vietnam Wars," which offers a rosy view of the NLF, or Michael Lind's "The Necessary War," which caricatures the North Vietnamese as lackeys of Moscow or Beijing.
Lawrence's short account is surprisingly comprehensive. While the bulk of the book focuses on the "American war" from 1965-73, early chapters offer a clear, short summary of early Vietnamese history and French colonization. The final chapter, which addresses the aftermath of the war both in the US and Vietnam, helps explain why the conflict still matters (one minor gripe: I would have loved for Lawrence to extend the international perspective to address war memory in other countries involved in the war, like South Korea, China, or Australia).
A short account like this, inevitably, will read like a textbook. But that's OK: you can read this book in a day, and an excellent bibliographic essay at the end is an entry point for further reading.
May 2, 2022
Pretty good considering what it is: trying to sum up the two wars in Vietnam (French and American) in less than 200 pages, including the lead-up and aftermath.
One thing that I especially appreciated, considering most of the earlier literature didn't have access, is accounts of the internal political debates in North Vietnam and how that influenced their military strategies. You really get a sense of two societies prepared to gradually escalate their entanglement in the conflict, not wanting to act so rashly that it becomes a larger-scale proxy war but still managing to escalate to the full-scale conflagration of the late-60s/early-70s.
Drawback is it's kinda textbooky: so determined to be even-handed that it doesn't offer much of an organizing thesis, and structured in a somewhat formal way. (Each chapter summarizes that phase of the war in a few paragraphs before sections that cover each focus within that era.) Also really makes you wanna just read a more thorough book on the parts that interest you, but the footnotes aren't as huge of a help in that regard as I'd like, even with a "Further Reading" section at the end. Ah well, I got a big pile of books to read anyways.
One thing that I especially appreciated, considering most of the earlier literature didn't have access, is accounts of the internal political debates in North Vietnam and how that influenced their military strategies. You really get a sense of two societies prepared to gradually escalate their entanglement in the conflict, not wanting to act so rashly that it becomes a larger-scale proxy war but still managing to escalate to the full-scale conflagration of the late-60s/early-70s.
Drawback is it's kinda textbooky: so determined to be even-handed that it doesn't offer much of an organizing thesis, and structured in a somewhat formal way. (Each chapter summarizes that phase of the war in a few paragraphs before sections that cover each focus within that era.) Also really makes you wanna just read a more thorough book on the parts that interest you, but the footnotes aren't as huge of a help in that regard as I'd like, even with a "Further Reading" section at the end. Ah well, I got a big pile of books to read anyways.
April 10, 2019
This book was really informative and it actually did explain the causes and effects of the Vietnam effort, however the book held a lot of focus on the United States more so than any of the other countries involved.
I will admit that I only read this book because it was required for a class paper, but it was very well-written so it didn't make me want to gauge my eyes out while reading it. This book also gave a different perspective on the war than is usually taught in a textbook or anywhere online.
If you are interested in history or wars I would strongly recommend this book as it will give you a new outlook on this specific moment in time, but if these topics don't peak your interest then I would recommend staying far, far away.
I will admit that I only read this book because it was required for a class paper, but it was very well-written so it didn't make me want to gauge my eyes out while reading it. This book also gave a different perspective on the war than is usually taught in a textbook or anywhere online.
If you are interested in history or wars I would strongly recommend this book as it will give you a new outlook on this specific moment in time, but if these topics don't peak your interest then I would recommend staying far, far away.
June 17, 2021
I'm rating this based on how useful it is for someone who wants to learn about the Vietnam War without much prior knowledge. I had to read this for my class on the Vietnam War and this was super helpful. I think the one thing that could make it better is if there had been a bit more personal experiences added from soldiers or Vietnamese citizens. I went into this with shamefully little knowledge on the Vietnam War and I can honestly say now that I feel like I am well educated on the topic, so for that reason I would definitely recommend this. Combining this with Appy's book containing interviews provides a solid basis of understanding the war.
February 14, 2025
An excellent review of the Vietnam War taken from an international perspective which I really appreciated because one cannot fully grasp the political backdrop of what led to the US involvement in Vietnam without such viewpoint. Also Lawrence delivers this in under 200 pages which means he does not waste much time with "filler" points or tangents.
If you are new to the Vietnam War I would whole heartedly recommend this book as an entry survey into this area, and even if you hold a strong command on the war itself, this book would still serve a useful purpose as to the background of the war seen from many different sides. Also, I feel the author stayed neutral and on topic.
If you are new to the Vietnam War I would whole heartedly recommend this book as an entry survey into this area, and even if you hold a strong command on the war itself, this book would still serve a useful purpose as to the background of the war seen from many different sides. Also, I feel the author stayed neutral and on topic.
June 26, 2021
Mark Lawrence is able to very concisely tie down the war and all of its influences on American life in a lovely 185 pages. I’m going to refer back to this book in the future when I’m guessing the war’s influence on future administrations. There appeared to be no heroes in the bloody process.
It was really important for Bobby Kennedy to win the election of 1968, it would've prevented us from the war crimes of Nixon and Kissinger. So many 'what ifs' to consider when studying this chaotic history. It almost makes me optimistic that it wasn't any worse.
It was really important for Bobby Kennedy to win the election of 1968, it would've prevented us from the war crimes of Nixon and Kissinger. So many 'what ifs' to consider when studying this chaotic history. It almost makes me optimistic that it wasn't any worse.
May 15, 2024
Leftist droll disguised as history
Should've known better than to buy something from the curator of the LBJ library and expect an objective treatment of the vietnam war. Apparently he was such a wonderful great leader who's only fault was letting the Republican party exist. Funny how when a Democrat is president the conservatives get the blame for manipulating foreign policy, but when a republican is in power its all his fault. Guess it's too much to ask for a Presidential groupie to consider actual events.
Should've known better than to buy something from the curator of the LBJ library and expect an objective treatment of the vietnam war. Apparently he was such a wonderful great leader who's only fault was letting the Republican party exist. Funny how when a Democrat is president the conservatives get the blame for manipulating foreign policy, but when a republican is in power its all his fault. Guess it's too much to ask for a Presidential groupie to consider actual events.
August 22, 2022
I really appreciated Lawrence's approach with establishing deeper historical context and not following singular narrative or stream of thinking for the unfolding of this war. Too often is the war reduced to Communism vs. Capitalism, but there is way more nuance and complexity to it. This book is great for those who want a digestible survey into the war and what leads up to it. It has whet my appetite to go back further into the 1600s of Vietnam.
February 27, 2024
Lawrence delivers the narrative with few frills, so effectively.
Personally, this book really shone in the first few chapters recounting the indigenous struggle against French colonialism, and the latter’s support by the United States pre-1960; the writing was always on the wall that the Vietnamese people would win their nation, but the hubris of Western imperialists might shift that goal as far away as they can.
Personally, this book really shone in the first few chapters recounting the indigenous struggle against French colonialism, and the latter’s support by the United States pre-1960; the writing was always on the wall that the Vietnamese people would win their nation, but the hubris of Western imperialists might shift that goal as far away as they can.
February 20, 2021
I thought that this was a really good overview of the Vietnam War. I like that Lawrence included a solid backdrop by explaining the causes of the War. Also, I really thought it was interesting how the information was presented from different sides throughout the narrative of the war. I definitely learned more about the Vietnam War from reading this book.
January 19, 2025
Succeeds as a concise history, even though it starts by going way back to explain the basics of Vietnamese history and the colonial experience. I did find it too focused on the big picture though - fragging, drug use and the effect of Vietnam on American culture are mentioned but are not really discussed. We do not understand the Vietnam but more understand the basic facts involved.
October 16, 2017
Concise overview of the causes and events that led up to the Vietnam War, and the major events on both sides during the war, and the aftermath. Well written. A good supplement to the PBS documentary series about the Vietnam War. 4 stars.
December 31, 2020
Excellent concise, dispassionate overview of the Vietnam War from various perspectives.
This was the first time I had read about the Vietnam War and I found this book hard to follow. Since this is a concise history, I also found the book very dense and an incredibly slow read, which I did not enjoy.
This was the first time I had read about the Vietnam War and I found this book hard to follow. Since this is a concise history, I also found the book very dense and an incredibly slow read, which I did not enjoy.
December 11, 2023
Truly a concise history
I think this is probably the best overview of the war that you could get. Dr. Lawrence is an absolute EXPERT in this field and I was so honored to learn from him this semester. I would recommend to anyone interested in understanding the origins of the war
I think this is probably the best overview of the war that you could get. Dr. Lawrence is an absolute EXPERT in this field and I was so honored to learn from him this semester. I would recommend to anyone interested in understanding the origins of the war
April 2, 2024
This book is a synthesis of the history of the Vietnam War and adds newly available primary source detail from the Soviet and North Vietnamese perspectives. It is very accessible and is an enjoyable read, but it makes no arguments or historiographic intervention.
June 13, 2024
John Kerry, a Navy veteran who later pursued a career in politics, called the war “The biggest nothing in history” and asked, “How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake”
This book throughly captures the war as an event in world history with a neutral view of the Vietnam War.
This book throughly captures the war as an event in world history with a neutral view of the Vietnam War.
April 17, 2018
very helpful and informative, easy to follow, discusses many perspectives and effects and causes
December 28, 2020
A great introduction to the subject. This book provides plenty of context and history and is fairly short read. Very concise. This is the first book on Vietnam that I have read.
March 19, 2021
If you don't know much about the Vietnam War, this book is an excellent resource that will provide you with the background and details from beginning to end.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews