Tim Page's Nam

by Tim Page, William Shawcross (Introduction)

Libro usado en buenas condiciones, por su antiguedad podria contener señales normales de uso

Genres: Photography, War, Nonfiction, History

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Tim Page (25 May 1944 – 24 August 2022) was an English photographer who made his name during the Vietnam War and based in Brisbane, Australia.

Page was a photojournalist in Sth East Asia and was injured in action four times, from 1967 to 1969.

During Page's recovery, back in the US, in the spring of 1970 he learnt of the capture of his best friend, roommate and fellow photo-journalist Sean Flynn in Cambodia. Throughout the 1970s and 80s he tried to discover Flynn's fate and final resting place and wanted to erect a memorial to all those in the media who either were killed or went missing in the Vietnam wars. This led him to found the Indochina Media Memorial Foundation and was the genesis for the book Requiem, co-edited with fellow Vietnam War photographer Horst Faas. Page's quest to clear up the mystery of Flynn's fate continued; as late as 2009 he was back in Cambodia, still searching for the site of Flynn's remains.

Page's book Requiem contains photographs taken by all of the photographers and journalists killed during the Vietnamese wars against the Japanese, French and Americans. Requiem has become since early 2000 a traveling photographic exhibition placed under the custody of the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. The exhibition has been presented in Vietnam's War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, as well as in New York City, Chicago, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Tokyo, Hanoi, Lausanne, and London. In 2011, it was selected to be the main exhibition of the Month of Photography Asia in Singapore.

Page is the subject of many documentaries and two films, and is the author of many books. He lived in Brisbane, Australia and no longer covers wars. He was Adjunct Professor of Photojournalism at Griffith University. - Wikipedia

Reviews

[Petergiaquinta]

I probably would have given this book five stars, but I don't have it today and have no idea what I'd think of it now. I read Tim Page's Nam for a Young Adult Lit course, and frankly don't remember it at all, but based on the following review I wrote for the class in 1990, I liked it a lot at the time. My favorite Vietnam War book from back in the day is Gustav Hasford's Short-Timers, which was the basis for the movie Full-Metal Jacket, although book and film share little common ground. Today, I've become quite a fan of Tim O'Brien, and his take on the war as seen in his non-fiction book If I Die in a Combat Zone, Going after Cacciato, The Things They Carried, and In the Lake of the Woods is in stark contrast to Hasford's novel and Page's book.

+++++++++++++++

Tim Page was a photojournalist during the Vietnam War. A flamboyant figure known for his reckless behavior on the battle field and his macho attitude toward the subject of war, Page would undergo great risks to get the best combat photos, often accompanying troops into battle. He ws wounded five times while taking pictures of the war, and the fifth one put an end to his picture taking, blowing out the back of his head. Although not expected to live, Page recovered, and after the release of Michael Herr's Vietnam book Dispatches, in which Page was a main character, there was a revival of interest in his work which led to the publication of Tim Page's Nam.

Essentially a photo essay of the Vietnam War seen through the eye of Tim Page's camera, the book is organized with seven chapters, each focusing on an issue of the war and each narrated by a rambling recollection by the photographer. The chapter titles include "Chopper Blitzkrieg," "Rock and Roll Flash," and "The Dao of Peace," among others. Page's essays don't really address the accompanying photographs, but try to complement them by providing monologues by the man who took them. Page writes in a first-person voice characterized by the slang of the time and the jargon of the combat soldier. He never makes an effort to condemn what he is depicting, and there is an attitude to the book which one might almost call a glamorization of the war. Nonetheless, his vivid language and recollections of the war and his poignant, graphic photography combine to make this a very interesting, and very different depiction of the Vietnam War from the majority of novels and movies with their strong anti-war sentiments.

+++++++++++++++
Reviewed for Literature for Young Adults course, March 1990

[Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb book. An excellent complement to Michael Herr's Dispatches, which was used as major source material for both Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket (two of the best war movies about the Vietnam conflict). Page uses his incredible photos of the Vietnam war to tell the bulk of the story in this book. A little known fact is the combat photographer author was wounded numerous times assisting American wounded. In fact one injury was so severe he lost a good portion of his brain and was told he would never walk again. Thankfully Page proved the doctors wrong by not only surviving, but also regaining the ability to walk and function "normally." The crazed photographer played by Dennis Hopper in Apocalypse Now is said to be based on Page. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Vietnam war.

[Simonva · Rating 5 out of 5]

fabulous photos.

[Martin Koenigsberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I found this book at a Thrift store/Charity Shop - I will admit I picked it up for the clear and strong photography, the good condition and the price. When I got it home and had a further look- and chatted with some Military Enthusiast friends- I realized that Tim Page was the quintessential combat photographer and the supposed model for Dennis Hopper's mad photog in Apocalypse Now. The book is basically a curated collection of some of his best work, with an accompanying narrative of sorts, very stream of consciousness, addressing some major ideas he wants us to remember. It's not a history- but is a historical memoir - and a good example of American Vietnam War books from the 1980s, this one published in 1983.

Then you see the pictures. Tim Young had an amazing eye for light, shadow, and emotion. He also seemed to have a nose for action. In this pursuit his facial elements let him down as he was to get wounded quite severely in Vietnam, leading to his retirement from action work. The photos take you inside of a lot of moments in Vietnam in an intensely personal way. I think any level of reader - Military history buff to total general interest audience member will find this an engaging read.

There are some adult themes and a few photos of pretty intense combat and injuries, so this is a for the Junior Reader over 13/14 years with a historical interest. For the Gamer/Modeler/Military Enthusiast, this is a mixed product. The Gamer is not going to get much in the way of specific scenario/campaign info, but this book does give the reader a good feel for the war and the period. The Modeler will find some build/diorama ideas- but will also use this more for understanding the era as it was lived. The Military Enthusiast can always use more photos of a war like Vietnam- and the period feel does come across. General audience readers will appreciate the spare narrative and the amazing visuals.

[Brendan Newport · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are photos from The Vietnam War that have entered our public consciousness; the Saigon Police Chief shooting a Viet Cong suspect with his revolver, the napalmed Vietnamese girl running down the road.

Page didn't take those shots, but the body-of-work he contributed to our view of Vietnam has been more telling than any single photo.

As a writer, Page was terrible (see my review of his autobiography Page After Page but with a Nikon in hand, Page redefined the expectations we had of a war photographer.

Getting to the right place was half-the-job, and hopping onto choppers, never turning away a chance of getting a photo was Pages' special forte'. Whilst others mooned-about in cheesy Saigon hotels, Page could be trusted to not get n the way, and if necessary to render assistance to troops he was assigned-to. The 173rd Airborne, though not particularly friendly to the Press, had plenty of time for Page when he helped the wounded after an ambush. One of the key pictures from that incident is reproduced on page 55.

No-one got closer to people than Page. On page 39 a US soldier is just about to pull the trigger on a grenade launcher, on page 30 a Ranger is taking a rest against a tree, on pages 14/15, a Huey pilot is pointing-out something to the co-pilot as he makes a sharp right turn. No shot is staged; page 22/23 is a fabulous shot of the noise and red dust kicked-up on landing. Page 24, a Kiowa flying low over water-buffalos.

[Bridgewes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the pictures, but the commentary was a little weak.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was 13, my best friend and I used to skip gym class and read this book ad nauseam!! I know, super geeky, right? Having been born in the 80s, we obviously missed the war, however, we both had connections to the conflict. Obviously now I have a much more "mature" view of war; however, irregardless, these photos were some of the most thought- provoking and beautiful I have ever seen.