Tiger in the Barbed Wire: An American in Vietnam 1952-1991

by Howard R. Simpson

One of the few Americans who lived in Vietnam during both the French and American involvements describes his experiences as a Foreign Service officer and chronicles the growth of Vietnam from colonialism to today.

243 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Terry Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book I ever read about Vietnam. Excellent description of what really got America into Vietnam and how we continue to repeat.

[Mikey B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author was a U.S. government press officer liaison. I’m not quite sure exactly what this implied – but it seemed like he was an intermediary between the various media affiliates and the U.S. government – trying to temper the bad news coming out of Vietnam.

Most of this book is on Vietnam during the 1950s, when the French were struggling to keep it as their colony. So, Howard Simpson was in the middle between the French, the Vietnamese, and the ever-growing American influence in Vietnam. By influence, I mean the ever-increasing military assistance being provided to the French by the U.S. to fight the nationalist Vietnamese. The author refers to the nationalists as communist – but it’s important to keep in mind that first and foremost they just wanted their country to be free of foreign domination.

The author exposes the quandary of the French occupiers being supplied by the American military and the increasing frustration at fighting Vietnamese nationalists.

There were so many different government agencies – French, American, and Vietnamese, which made a unified approach to fighting the nationalists impossible. All were competing to have their own version of the war put forward.

This is a very personal narrative – and we are given insights into the different people involved. The author digresses often, telling us of parties attended and bars he went to – which were plentiful in Saigon. He did spend time in Hanoi and visited Dien Bien Phu.

With growing American dominance in the 1960s, there were constant clashes of rival groups in South Vietnam, which led to the overthrow and killing of Prime Minister Diem in 1963. South Vietnam, in addition to fighting the North, was also preoccupied with civil wars. South Vietnam was far from unified.

The author speaks frequently of atrocities committed by the North, but does not mention what his own country did - Agent Orange, the carpet bombing of the North, the brutal military transgressions in Cambodia and Laos, the unexploded ordinance which still remains in much of the country…

All the mistakes made by the French were repeated by the Americans.

[Sam Williamson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This really is a superb work. The author was present at some amazing historical events of the 20th century. His description of the time period in Vietnam (1951-54) when the French were fighting to hold on is just fantastic and one of a kind. How the United States fell into the same trap as the French is one of the 20th century's great tragedies. We should have been listening to the experts like Mr. Howard R. Simpson.

[Tim Ayers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book about the Vietnam War both during the French period and the U.S. This book also served as the main source material for Satori by Don Winslow.