One of the best things about this book is the inclusion of several contributors' first hand experiences with some items. Their detailed descriptions might help jog some fun memories of your own. For those of us who grew up in the 1970s and 80s, this book is a complete delight. Buy it. It's probably fitting I stumbled across it in a used bookstore. I was born in 1969. I read this book in a day and loved it.

My brother gave me this book a few months ago and I finally made time to read it - and I'm glad I did.
This book is full of great information about the life of a great soldier. It contains information that leaders in all walks of life - military and civilian - will benefit from. It also gives some great insight on Army life. I spent eight years in the Navy and was fortunate to work for several NCOs and Officers that shared Mr.Bainbridge's view on leadership - they really knew how to treat their men.
I might have enjoyed it even more had it contained more personal information - not very many details are given into home or family life unless it relates to the subjects military life.
Overall, a very down-to-earth account of life that many would do well to emulate in both character and content.

Tracers is a compelling, harsh funny and moving look at the Vietnam War, as told by men who fought there. Originally developed through psychodrama workshops, the play takes several archetypal soldiers- the black militant, the scared kid, the hippie soldier, and places them in a series of vignettes that are frighteningly realistic in what the young men of the 60s and 70s went through in Vietnam. A must read!

This book is on the "Recommended Reading List" of Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 295, Indianapolis, Indiana

Traveling to Vietnam: American Peace Activists and the War is a well-researched study, detailing trips made by Americans to Viet Nam during the American War. Over two hundred people went to Ha Noi and the north from 1965 to the end of the war. They usually traveled in small groups of three to four people. Some groups were made up of individuals traveling on their own; and other groups traveled as representatives of international peace organizations, civil rights groups, religious organizations, and academic institutions. Most travelers to North Vietnam opposed United States involvement in the war. Initially, the U.S. government tried to restrict travel to North Vietnam by confiscating or refusing to issue passports. Visitors to Ha Noi from 1965 on, who met with North Vietnamese officials, often brought back messages to U.S. government officials, who refused to meet with them. The messages from the North Vietnamese reiterated the North's position for negotiating an end to the conflict--that the U.S. would cease bombing and withdraw their troops. Travelers to Viet Nam also brought back eyewitness accounts of the damages to civilian life and property by American bombing raids. Early travelers would often face negative consequences when they returned to the U.S., legally, personally, and professionally, but they continued to tell their stories. By 1971, travel restrictions were less severe, although public criticism of their travels continued. Many of the visitors requested and were able to talk with American prisoners of war in North Vietnam. They were able to deliver letters and packages between families and prisoners. They urged officials in Ha Noi to release the prisoners, and eventually twelve were released. Other visitors delivered medical supplies, which were desperately needed in the bomb-ravaged north. The American Friends Service Committee was especially involved in developing a relationship with the medical establishment of North Vietnam, arranging donations of medical equipment, penicillin, and other medicines. The humanitarian efforts begun during the war endured after the war, in helping to rebuild structures destroyed by bombs and in helping to normalize relations between Viet Nam and the U.S. Mary Hershberger has relied on primary source information, interviews, and letters written by the travelers to Viet Nam, as well as news articles written by them and about them at the time of their trips. Her book is a fascinating, in-depth view of the war years from another perspective.

The Treasures And Pleasures Of Vietnam And Cambodia: Best Of The Best In Travel And Shopping is an amazing, "user friendly" touring, travel, and shopping guide. Individual chapters focus upon the marvels of Vietnamese and Cambodian cities, as well as adventure-of-a-lifetime guidelines for smart traveling and shopping. Filled with sensible advice, maps, addresses, tips, great places to go and an easy index, The Treasures and Pleasures of Vietnam and Cambodia covers everything short of being a primer in the native language. Highly recommended for anyone planning a trip to these exotic and beautiful lands, The Treasures And Pleasures Of Vietnam And Cambodia is a "must" for getting the most out of a business or vacation trip to these exotic lands.

Two Lands, One Heart: An American Boy's Journey to His Mother's Vietnam by Jeremy Schmidt and Ted Wood -- what a gorgeous book for anyone interested in Vietnam, the refugee experience, the going back to your native land or family's homeland! The photographs are wonderful and the text is factual, interesting and fun. I bought this book hoping it would be at least mildly interesting for my Vietnamese-American students--what a delight to receive the book and to realize that all my students would enjoy the story and photos. It's hard to find good stories about Vietnam. I applaud the authors/photographer for putting out such an intelligent, sensitive and enjoyable book. Adults as well as kids will love it. It would be a perfect book for teachers who have Vietnamese students, but anyone would like to learn about Vietnam from this charming book.

This is the fourth and largest volume of a mammoth five-volume study (volume five is not yet complete). This review applies to both this volume and to the study in general.

The Gibbons Study is the largest, most balanced, and most complete study of US Government Vietnam policy currently available. Its goal is much like that of the Pentagon Papers, and in size it is just as big as the analysis section of that study. However, it is much more comprehensive, using resources (like the LBJ library) which were unavailable in the late 60s. It is all original analysis, and contains only a few pieces of contemporary primary documents (unlike the Pentagon Papers, which contains a million words of documents).

The study was commissioned by the Senate Foreign Relations committee in the late 1970s, and the work was done by Gibbons, a researcher in the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress. True to his mission, Gibbons keeps his work as apolitical as possible.

Every page is very detailed and impeccably-referenced. The references themselves are worthy of note, as they use the rarely-used form of footnotes, as opposed to endnotes. Such a format puts the references right on the page with the main text, so it is far easier for the reader to make use of them. And, in the Gibbons study, the footnotes are often huge and detailed.

This work is frequently cited as a principal reference by many recent Vietnam writers, including Karnow, Hendrickson, Gardner, and Herring, exceeded in such references only by Foreigh Relations of the United States. It is a big, serious study, appropriate for only the most dedicated student of the war.

This volume is by far the largest in the series, amounting to approximately 645,000 words. In comparison, Stanley Karnow's great general history, "Vietnam: A History," is considered a large book, yet it measures 330,000 words. But don't be intimidated -- the size and detail of Gibbons' work only adds to its usefulness.

this is one of the first books to be published (outside of vietnam) focusing on contemporary vietnamese paintings. the essays in the book are quite well written and the quality of the book print and layout is outstanding. the selection of artists is also very good- and representative of the earlier mid century french influenced artists and the "mid-career" contemporary artists making waves in vietnam today. unfortunately, not all the artwork published is top-notch; availability of the best pieces is still largely at the disposal of the vietnamese museums, galleries and saavy local collectors. also look for the other book, "contemporary vietnamese art: poetic reflections", published by gallerie la vong (hong kong). it should still be available. both books are "must haves."

Peg Mullen is an Iowa farm wife whose son Michael was killed in Viet Nam. Her story was told by others in "Friendly Fire." This is HER side of the story and it's a powerful story at that. She documents in plain speak the terrible agony of a mother who not only has lost her firstborn, but who has to endure the obfuscation of the United States government in keeping her from the truth. It was Peg Mullen vs. The US Army and Mrs. Mullen won. Peg is a long-time activist and her crusade against war and other nonsense makes "can't stop" reading. There are incredible moments of pathos -- Peg's detached recitation of the day she learned of Michael's death -- and moments that cause your chest to swell with pride as when she toppled a candidate for a top defense post. Mrs. Mullen went up against the President of the United States and Mrs. Mullen won. You'll be better for reading this wonderfully moving, inspiring account of the tragedy of "Unfriendly Fire."