Robert D. Shulzinger
I read this book for my history class on Vietnam this semester, and because of this it was done in several installments. I think, though, that I was able to get a fairly decent picture of the book as a whole. It's basically a summary of United States policy towards Vietnam from the very beginnings of involvement in the Truman and Eisenhower administrations to withdrawal at the Embassy under President Ford. The only thing that really got on my nerves about this book was its propensity to forget to capitalize some acronyms. Any book about Vietnam will be chock-full of acronyms, I can assure you, but though this annoyed me I was able to get over it.
As the title implies, Shulzinger's main thesis is that conceptions of time in relation to Vietnam were all off. Was it to be a quick war, a long war, how long would it take for peace talks to conclude, etc. I suppose these are questions inherent in all wars, but in a war such as the Vietnamese struggle these questions are of increasing importance. Vietnam had no real objectives, unless preventing a communist takeover counts, and I for one think that is a really lame ex-post-facto excuse for killing so many of our young men uselessly.
My personal opinions aside, however, the book is pretty well-written, though it can be a little overwhelmingly information-heavy at times. For someone looking for a good, comprehensive introduction to United States policy regarding Vietnam (but not necessarily events within the war itself), I would recommend taking a look at this book.
Grade: B
As the title implies, Shulzinger's main thesis is that conceptions of time in relation to Vietnam were all off. Was it to be a quick war, a long war, how long would it take for peace talks to conclude, etc. I suppose these are questions inherent in all wars, but in a war such as the Vietnamese struggle these questions are of increasing importance. Vietnam had no real objectives, unless preventing a communist takeover counts, and I for one think that is a really lame ex-post-facto excuse for killing so many of our young men uselessly.
My personal opinions aside, however, the book is pretty well-written, though it can be a little overwhelmingly information-heavy at times. For someone looking for a good, comprehensive introduction to United States policy regarding Vietnam (but not necessarily events within the war itself), I would recommend taking a look at this book.
Grade: B
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