The Last Man Out of Saigon

by Chris Mullin

Sent into Vietnam in the last days of the war, CIA agent MacShane finds his mission of organizing resistance jeopardized when he is captured by the secret police.

209 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 15, 1988

About the author

Chris Mullin is the former MP for Sunderland South, a journalist and author. His books include the first volume of his acclaimed diaries, A View From the Foothills. He also wrote the thriller, A Very British Coup, with the television version winning BAFTA and Emmy awards. He was a minister in three departments, Environment, Transport and Regions, International Development and The Foreign Office.

Reviews

[Jak60 · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Last Man Out Of Saigon is less of a spy story than a historical fiction on the first days after the American evacuation of Viet Nam; interesting title by the way, as it makes you wonder whether there remained any men, or women at that, in Saigon after the American ran....The Last American Out Of Saigon would have been more appropriate especially for an anti American book.
Because the book is unmistakably anti-American, and that is fine by me as I thoroughly enjoy dialectic and polemic, being confronted with different viewpoints from mine. Chris Mullin is a former labour MP with marked leftist sympathies which he likes to display - he did that in A Very British Coup - and that is fine too as he couples such sympathies with pretty good writing skills. Moreover, Chris Mullin has the courage to pick up rather controversial themes and to handle them with a good degree of provocation; this can be thought provoking so it's good.
The main flaw of Mullin's storytelling - here as well as in his other novel - is that he places all the good guys on the side he likes and all the bad ones on the other; his world is one in black and white with no space for nuances, subtleties or blurred lines between good and evil. The re-education process the protagonist is subjected to in a Viet Minh camp looks like philosophy classes, a cathartic therapy aimed at helping him see the light, his gaolers are all oriental wisdom, pure and candid like angels; the torturing? the war crimes? they only occurred on the CIA side....this is less thought provoking than annoying. What might help you not to get too annoyed is to accept as an ingoing assumption that the book's scope is to portray the truth as g, seen from one side and one side only, acknowledging that the other side's truth is outside the scope.
Ultimately though, the deadly sin of this book is that of being, after a promising start, utterly uneventful and uninteresting.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

From 1986, this is a more nuanced and redemptive read than expected as MacShane, a CIA operative is unwillingly sent to stay behind in Saigon after the Northern conquest in 1975 to contact possible resisters. There he is soon captured and sent north eventually ending up in a farming village. The 36-year-old is moulded by his experiences and the message of the Vietnamese people blaming the country rather than the people isn’t laboured. Realistic characters, the air of authenticity and reflective prose contribute to a fine nove.l

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I enjoyed this as I could relate it to places I had visited, but it provides an accurate portrayal of events and a decent back story to show the Vietnam war from another perspective.

[Ryan Hornish · Rating 4 out of 5]

A view on Vietnam I didn’t expect, no spy craft just a bunch of rice farmers and post war peace but equally Anti-American. The author was a labor MP in the UK so his views are definitely visible.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is less of a thriller than the Men's Adventure-style cover would lead one to believe but nonetheless is a pretty good read. Go into it expecting more Graham Greene than Ian Fleming and you'll have the right mindset.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book many years ago - the impression still remains. Love this book, thinking to read it again