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The Ten Thousand Day War
Recently pulled from public school library.
370 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1981
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
June 5, 2023
A fascinating analysis of the Vietnam War. I grew up during the conflict with the news showing excerpts nightly. This book was published in 1981 but is still relevant and educational. I never knew Ho Chi Minh means in English The Enlightened One and it is the North Vietnamese who come out as the oppressed side. B52 bombers dropping more bombs on North Vietnam and the jungles of the Ho Chi Minh trail than all of WWII with devastating costs to both sides.
The history of the mistakes made by the politicians was simply catastrophic for both sides. When Kennedy sent two experts in the 60s to report back on the situation in South Vietnam he got conflicting reports and said were you visiting the same country. A common theme was lies told to Congress and the American people.
Johnson and Nixon like Kennedy got conflicting advice and information which resulted in mistakes. Their blinkered belief that if South Vietnam fell South East Asia would all become communist. Completely wrong but noone gave alternative options.
What I felt was missing was more analysis of Kissinger and is incompetence in the negotiations. Essentially the North Vietnamese negotiators ran rings around him.
The opportunity of peace was missed so often with the defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu. If America had listened to the French and allowed elections then millions of lives would have been saved. As De Gaulle said ‘I predict to you that you will, step by step, be sucked into a bottomless military and political quagmire.’ Prophetic words.
A war opposed in the US by many, low morale of soldiers, corruption, confusion and distrust of the South Vietnamese military. Ultimately the fall of Saigon was quick, the evacuation of Americans and South Vietnamese supporters was chaotic and Kissinger was strung along thinking negotiations could result in a coalition government. Luckily when Saigon fell their was no bloodbath.
Fascinating book. We’re lessons learnt. If we look at Afghanistan and Iraq the answer would be no.
The history of the mistakes made by the politicians was simply catastrophic for both sides. When Kennedy sent two experts in the 60s to report back on the situation in South Vietnam he got conflicting reports and said were you visiting the same country. A common theme was lies told to Congress and the American people.
Johnson and Nixon like Kennedy got conflicting advice and information which resulted in mistakes. Their blinkered belief that if South Vietnam fell South East Asia would all become communist. Completely wrong but noone gave alternative options.
What I felt was missing was more analysis of Kissinger and is incompetence in the negotiations. Essentially the North Vietnamese negotiators ran rings around him.
The opportunity of peace was missed so often with the defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu. If America had listened to the French and allowed elections then millions of lives would have been saved. As De Gaulle said ‘I predict to you that you will, step by step, be sucked into a bottomless military and political quagmire.’ Prophetic words.
A war opposed in the US by many, low morale of soldiers, corruption, confusion and distrust of the South Vietnamese military. Ultimately the fall of Saigon was quick, the evacuation of Americans and South Vietnamese supporters was chaotic and Kissinger was strung along thinking negotiations could result in a coalition government. Luckily when Saigon fell their was no bloodbath.
Fascinating book. We’re lessons learnt. If we look at Afghanistan and Iraq the answer would be no.
February 10, 2018
I first read this book not long after it came out. It was required reading back then. I didn't know anything about it being a part of a TV series and have only recently watched the TV series from start to finish. This brought me back to the book, but my original copy had long since gone into the hands of other borrowers. I managed to get another copy secondhand. It seems quite mad that a book as good as this should be out of print and unavailable in a new copy and edition.
This is THE best non-fiction book I have come across on Vietnam and it still sits proud above the rest - dispassionate in it's analysis and as fair-minded as it is about possible to get. It's really great to find a book that covers the complete period from the re-arrival of the French, through their defeat and the stumbling into war by the USA to its eventual defeat.
It becomes more and more apparent that America really did stumble into this one and having got itself into it, found it almost impossible to withdraw 'with honour'. Firstly the States funded and supported Ho Chi Minh and the forces of 'Indochina' in it's harrassment of the Japanese and then, having taken a position post-Second World War against the reacquainting of the old colonial powers with their pre-war colonies, with the US from it's historical position as republic coming out of the ashes of British colonialisation, they clandestinely supported the Vietnamese in their struggle against the French. This is very similar to positions taken on behalf of other countries struggling for national identity and anti-colonialism throughout the world post Second World War.
At the same time they were embarking upon the classic 'americanisation' and cultural 'colonialisation' of the south through the promotion of the 'Free Market economy', globalisation and unfettered capitalism. Though it was never OK for the North Vietnamese to declare a desire for nationalism and self-determination with communist affinities (particularly with Russia - the Americans NEVER understood the legacy of history and the hundreds of years that Vietnam had struggled and fought Chinese invasion and hegemony, that the Yanks concern and worry that there would be a 'domino' effect as 'Red' China took over and controlled state after state in South East Asia was a completely baseless hypothesis), it was OK for the richest country in the world to overrun a country with their cultural and economic pornography and 'rest-and-recreationalise' a whole region. The problem was between supporting nationalism and national identity under the vision of anti-colonialism, but when that might embrace a shift to the left, then American alarm bells started to ring very loud. This happened in a number of countries from around that time, the most clear other example is the fuzzy way American geopolitics led it down various paths in Iran post Second World War. South East Asia is still the whorehouse of the west - not so much Vietnam now - but nip over to Thailand and its still soiled by the sordidness of cheap clip joints and massage parlours for GI's-on-leave now turned into young-to-old white western men on the look out for a bit of horizontal with some eastern promise on the cheap. The whole of the Thai tourist industry appears majorly funded on the premise of male commonly white porno-tourism.
For people of my generation - I'm mid-50's born - this is an extremely important book. For many others younger I would say read it and read how America by wrong and poor assumptions, by pure blind stupidity, by hawkishness on the part of those seen as liberals, by the stubborness of mules and sabre-rattling of technocrats stumbled into a useless and tragic war which should never have happened. The process of supporting nationalism and opposing any move to the left or move to a more egalitarian society NOT based on hyper-consumer capitalism has never been resolved by the US. Then think about Afghanistan and Iraq and Iran. Think about 'the World's Policeman' and the deficit of analysis in the States. Think about what equality means and how it is promoted.
A thoroughly worthwhile history book - one which should fundamentally make everyone that reads it ask deep questions on the future of the world we live in and to learn lessons. If we fail to learn anything by looking at our past mistakes then then we will be condemned forever to stumble into the same disasters and condemn our species to the charnel house.
This is THE best non-fiction book I have come across on Vietnam and it still sits proud above the rest - dispassionate in it's analysis and as fair-minded as it is about possible to get. It's really great to find a book that covers the complete period from the re-arrival of the French, through their defeat and the stumbling into war by the USA to its eventual defeat.
It becomes more and more apparent that America really did stumble into this one and having got itself into it, found it almost impossible to withdraw 'with honour'. Firstly the States funded and supported Ho Chi Minh and the forces of 'Indochina' in it's harrassment of the Japanese and then, having taken a position post-Second World War against the reacquainting of the old colonial powers with their pre-war colonies, with the US from it's historical position as republic coming out of the ashes of British colonialisation, they clandestinely supported the Vietnamese in their struggle against the French. This is very similar to positions taken on behalf of other countries struggling for national identity and anti-colonialism throughout the world post Second World War.
At the same time they were embarking upon the classic 'americanisation' and cultural 'colonialisation' of the south through the promotion of the 'Free Market economy', globalisation and unfettered capitalism. Though it was never OK for the North Vietnamese to declare a desire for nationalism and self-determination with communist affinities (particularly with Russia - the Americans NEVER understood the legacy of history and the hundreds of years that Vietnam had struggled and fought Chinese invasion and hegemony, that the Yanks concern and worry that there would be a 'domino' effect as 'Red' China took over and controlled state after state in South East Asia was a completely baseless hypothesis), it was OK for the richest country in the world to overrun a country with their cultural and economic pornography and 'rest-and-recreationalise' a whole region. The problem was between supporting nationalism and national identity under the vision of anti-colonialism, but when that might embrace a shift to the left, then American alarm bells started to ring very loud. This happened in a number of countries from around that time, the most clear other example is the fuzzy way American geopolitics led it down various paths in Iran post Second World War. South East Asia is still the whorehouse of the west - not so much Vietnam now - but nip over to Thailand and its still soiled by the sordidness of cheap clip joints and massage parlours for GI's-on-leave now turned into young-to-old white western men on the look out for a bit of horizontal with some eastern promise on the cheap. The whole of the Thai tourist industry appears majorly funded on the premise of male commonly white porno-tourism.
For people of my generation - I'm mid-50's born - this is an extremely important book. For many others younger I would say read it and read how America by wrong and poor assumptions, by pure blind stupidity, by hawkishness on the part of those seen as liberals, by the stubborness of mules and sabre-rattling of technocrats stumbled into a useless and tragic war which should never have happened. The process of supporting nationalism and opposing any move to the left or move to a more egalitarian society NOT based on hyper-consumer capitalism has never been resolved by the US. Then think about Afghanistan and Iraq and Iran. Think about 'the World's Policeman' and the deficit of analysis in the States. Think about what equality means and how it is promoted.
A thoroughly worthwhile history book - one which should fundamentally make everyone that reads it ask deep questions on the future of the world we live in and to learn lessons. If we fail to learn anything by looking at our past mistakes then then we will be condemned forever to stumble into the same disasters and condemn our species to the charnel house.
March 31, 2013
Looking back on the Vietnam war, you could be forgiven for asking: what in God's name went wrong?
Maclear's book charts the development of the war from 1945 to the fateful escalation in the gulf of Tonkin, along the way highlighting a catalouge of missed opportunities and sheer stupidity on both sides.
We see the drip drip drip of mission creep as successive presidents from Eisenhower to Kennedy slowly commit more and more combat resources to Saigon. We see the destruction of Johnson, who's social reforms at home, should have elavated him to the patheon of great American presidents, and above all, we see the destruction heaped upon Vietnam in its long struggle to be free of foreign control.
Given what we know these days about Nixon and Kissinger's blatant sabotage of the Paris Peace talks, you could be forgiven for thinking that a book 30+ years old would have no insights, but this this piece remains an excellant introduction for the layman.
Kipling's line about the "fool who tried to hustle the east," has never been more apt.
Maclear's book charts the development of the war from 1945 to the fateful escalation in the gulf of Tonkin, along the way highlighting a catalouge of missed opportunities and sheer stupidity on both sides.
We see the drip drip drip of mission creep as successive presidents from Eisenhower to Kennedy slowly commit more and more combat resources to Saigon. We see the destruction of Johnson, who's social reforms at home, should have elavated him to the patheon of great American presidents, and above all, we see the destruction heaped upon Vietnam in its long struggle to be free of foreign control.
Given what we know these days about Nixon and Kissinger's blatant sabotage of the Paris Peace talks, you could be forgiven for thinking that a book 30+ years old would have no insights, but this this piece remains an excellant introduction for the layman.
Kipling's line about the "fool who tried to hustle the east," has never been more apt.
July 23, 2013
This may be, or at least was at one time, the definitive book about the Vietnam War. It provides an all encompassing overview of the whole conflict from French involvement, and into the post-US withdrawal years to the end of the conflict (hence the 10,000 days).
Might be a little bit heavy reading for someone with absolutely no background regarding the conflict. But it does a great job of discussing the entire episode from the highest levels of international diplomacy, down to individual battles and the experiences of the people involved. Maclear does not offer much in terms of analysis or overarching themes or any kind of insights into the how and why of the Vietnam War, this is more of a cut and dried history of the war that allows the reader to draw their own conclusions. Some prefer this type of writing, others don't.
It is also important to keep in mind that this was written in a time when historical narratives were less entertaining or sensational as they have become in more recent years, so it can be a bit dry at times. Otherwise, it is well researched and comprehensive.
Get yourself a large map to keep nearby while reading.
PS - You may want to consider a newer updated book, because there has undoubtedly been a ton of new research and info revealed since this book was written.
Might be a little bit heavy reading for someone with absolutely no background regarding the conflict. But it does a great job of discussing the entire episode from the highest levels of international diplomacy, down to individual battles and the experiences of the people involved. Maclear does not offer much in terms of analysis or overarching themes or any kind of insights into the how and why of the Vietnam War, this is more of a cut and dried history of the war that allows the reader to draw their own conclusions. Some prefer this type of writing, others don't.
It is also important to keep in mind that this was written in a time when historical narratives were less entertaining or sensational as they have become in more recent years, so it can be a bit dry at times. Otherwise, it is well researched and comprehensive.
Get yourself a large map to keep nearby while reading.
PS - You may want to consider a newer updated book, because there has undoubtedly been a ton of new research and info revealed since this book was written.
July 25, 2007
This is a book about the "American" war and/or the Vietnam War written by a Canadian. Recommended to me by a friend. I borrowed it from a library and now have ordered a copy for my bookshelf. Makes me wonder how blind some politicians can be to the reality of having global peace...and how not to go about achieving the same. Many pages brought gasps of incredulity to my mouth and some provoked outright laughter and disgust.
March 8, 2018
An interesting account of the entire Vietnam War. This book covers the war from the very beginning when the U.S. had only 5 advisers in the country until the final chopper lifts off. A very well written book.
July 29, 2016
An excellent book and a well balanced account of our (at the time) longest war. Written in 1981, perhaps there is newer scholarship and better sources now, but this remains a very readable account of the conflict.
December 26, 2009
Very good.
December 28, 2016
Great summation of the chain of poor decisions that led to the escalation of the Vietnam War.
May 5, 2012
This is a very good book it sure opened my eyes up.So many facts that know one knew about except those that were there.It was a war that we could have avoided all together.
January 23, 2014
A detailed overall picture of the US involvement in Vietnam. One of those books that leads you off into many other avenues.
March 23, 2010
This book took me a very long time to read. My brother passed it on to me over a year ago, and I started it a couple of times but could never stick with it. I finally was able to finish it out of desperation when I moved and had no television or internet or anything better to read unpacked. I really love learning about history, and I love understanding historical events and their significance... i can say that I accomplished one of those two by reading this book. I did "learn" more about the Vietnam War, including its key players and timetable, but I can't honestly say that I fully understand it. I would say that by reading this book, and having a couple of talks with my dad who is a veteran of Vietnam, i probably have about a 50% understanding of how and why the "conflict" took place.
The book itself was a huge undertaking, spanning over 20 years of fighting in Vietnam. (Between France and North Vietnam, between the South and the North, and between the South and the North with all the other players including the U.S.) It was challenging to follow the author throughout the timeline and keep all the Vietnamese generals and various ambassadors and Secretaries of five different U.S. administrations straight. The author is Canadian, and I believe a little biased against the United States and their involvement. Several times, after reading his commentary about the social climate in the states or the quality of soldiers we were sending to Vietnam, I would call my dad for clarification, and was usually informed that it really wasn't that way at all. For example, I asked my dad if he was surrounded by imbeciles and degenerates who took delight in raping and murdering villagers while stationed in Phu Cat with the Air Force. He said of course not, and that maybe some of Maclear's more depressing statistics came purely from the Marines, not the armed forces in general as he made it sound. So, although I'm glad I read this book and I feel a little less ignorant about the war because of it, I have taken this account with the proverbial grain of salt.
The book itself was a huge undertaking, spanning over 20 years of fighting in Vietnam. (Between France and North Vietnam, between the South and the North, and between the South and the North with all the other players including the U.S.) It was challenging to follow the author throughout the timeline and keep all the Vietnamese generals and various ambassadors and Secretaries of five different U.S. administrations straight. The author is Canadian, and I believe a little biased against the United States and their involvement. Several times, after reading his commentary about the social climate in the states or the quality of soldiers we were sending to Vietnam, I would call my dad for clarification, and was usually informed that it really wasn't that way at all. For example, I asked my dad if he was surrounded by imbeciles and degenerates who took delight in raping and murdering villagers while stationed in Phu Cat with the Air Force. He said of course not, and that maybe some of Maclear's more depressing statistics came purely from the Marines, not the armed forces in general as he made it sound. So, although I'm glad I read this book and I feel a little less ignorant about the war because of it, I have taken this account with the proverbial grain of salt.
May 19, 2017
The tragic and violent history of Vietnam's struggle for complete independence from colonialism and then the type of rule it wanted for itself as opposed to what western democracies hoped for. It is an epic struggle that starts after Japanese occupation during World War II. Japan is defeated but this does nothing for the former French Indo-China colony. They are reoccupied by France. So begins a desperate and brutal struggle against France. It goes on for almost nine years and culminates in the removal of French colonising government. However, the independence is not what Vietnams expects. The country is divided between North and South Vietnam. Two different nations. One friendly to the western democracies (South) the other pro-Soviet communist (North)
The Northern half of Vietnam will not settle for this and tries to absorb the south under its own type of politics and rule as a whole and united Vietnam. The propped up Southern Vietnamese government relies on U.S. military aid. At first on an advisory capacity. However, as the struggle continues through the late fifties and towards the mid-sixties it becomes clear that American aid must come in a more robust and direct form of intervention.
The North of Vietnam must fight a war against the most powerful military force the world has ever known. She (North Vietnam) has one advantage. U.S. land forces will not enter the North for fear of escalating the conflict into China and the Soviet Union.
This one ace card allows the north of Vietnam to keep fighting indefinitely. No matter how many battles the north lose, they can always send more fighters in from the north. It goes on for many years. A war of attrition. But the Vietnamese seem to be incredibly durable. From 1945 to 1975 the Vietnamese keep on fighting. In the end, even the world's biggest superpower lacks the political will to keep going. The Americans pull out and the South is left to its fate.
This historical account of the Vietnam War is a very compelling read and I would highly recommend this historical read.
The Northern half of Vietnam will not settle for this and tries to absorb the south under its own type of politics and rule as a whole and united Vietnam. The propped up Southern Vietnamese government relies on U.S. military aid. At first on an advisory capacity. However, as the struggle continues through the late fifties and towards the mid-sixties it becomes clear that American aid must come in a more robust and direct form of intervention.
The North of Vietnam must fight a war against the most powerful military force the world has ever known. She (North Vietnam) has one advantage. U.S. land forces will not enter the North for fear of escalating the conflict into China and the Soviet Union.
This one ace card allows the north of Vietnam to keep fighting indefinitely. No matter how many battles the north lose, they can always send more fighters in from the north. It goes on for many years. A war of attrition. But the Vietnamese seem to be incredibly durable. From 1945 to 1975 the Vietnamese keep on fighting. In the end, even the world's biggest superpower lacks the political will to keep going. The Americans pull out and the South is left to its fate.
This historical account of the Vietnam War is a very compelling read and I would highly recommend this historical read.
March 7, 2009
This book, like others I have read, points out mistakes that were made beginning with getting involved in Vietnam after WW II. Several individuals argued against it but their arguments went unheeded. There is also mention of unintended signals i.e. the removal of an individual from the embassy staff for reasons not pertaining to the war. There is also the issue of not following Sun Tzu's advice which was to 'know your enemy'. MacLear also discusses Nixon's 'madman theory' in negotiations to end the war.
April 20, 2019
A very good overview of the Vietnam War. Boy, what a disaster. So many lives lost (both military and civilian), so much money spent, and for what? This sentence says a lot: "Perhaps only the soldiers, who endured it, fully understand what happened in Vietnam and in their own society." They were so psychologically scarred by what they had seen and done and then had to come home to mostly hatred from the American people.
July 10, 2015
A comprehensive look back at the environment surrounding the war. How the west got involved and why, and the decisions that caused them to remain there for so long. There are so many players, opinions and agendas it a wonder it ever ended. Seriously, you could change the names and it could be a document about the war on terror. Will we ever learn?
November 15, 2016
This book gives a great account of the war in Vietnam. Not only the war with the Americans, but also with the French. However there are some flaws in this book. Although the book follows mostly a chronological path, it jumps back and forth a lot, which makes it a bit hard to follow some times. Also the book provides only a single map and no other visuals.
May 12, 2017
Excellent overview of the Vietnam war, from it's inception as an attempt to gain independence from France, to the assumption by the U.S., to the North Vietnamese conquest of the South. It concentrates on the steps (missteps) by the U.S. in escalating the war far beyond what was reasonable or effective. The things I didn't know.
August 17, 2018
My edition looks like this but actually published in paperback in 1982. Read it in the early 80's. This was the war (or part of it at least) I saw every night on TV when I was a teenager: thus its origins and prosecution had interest for me. Alarming that we see the same folly... but then it benefits some at a huge cost to others. Worth reading if you're looking at this period.
June 10, 2011
This is a very valuable book containing information set out clearly on the politics and the war from both sides. I found this book to answer quite a few of my questions on the war in Vietnam.
I really commend the author for the way he presented the information.
I really commend the author for the way he presented the information.
May 20, 2019
Nixon and Kissinger play good cop, insane cop and both end up feeling they have no choice but to live up to their stupid threats. Michael Maclear does a fine job of explaining the machismo, the arrogance and the million of bombs that were dropped on the Vietnamese.
January 24, 2026
This is a very informative, comprehensive, well-referenced history of Vietnam & its conflict with the French and the threads which led to United States protracted involvement.
Essential for anyone who lived through this time period or those interested in it.
Essential for anyone who lived through this time period or those interested in it.
May 11, 2015
An interesting, almost contemporary (1981) take on the Vietnam 'conflict'. It begins promisingly by illustrating views from both sides, but then concentrates on the US side for the rest of the book, which seems like a lost opportunity. Popular, but insightful.
July 13, 2007
A truly moving account a must read on the war
June 14, 2011
the authoritative history, both sides, of the American/Vietnam war.
August 2, 2011
A rich, complex history of the Vietnam War
July 5, 2014
Still the best book on Vietnam
August 14, 2014
A seminal work. One of the best books written about this terrible, Needless war. Must reading for anyone interested in learning about this terrible time in history.
June 14, 2015
read this in college -- excellent in every respect
October 3, 2015
Should be Mandatory reading for all high schools
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews