Synopses & Reviews
The Vietnam War was the defining event of recent U.S. history, a tragic struggle that cost the lives of 58,000 Americans and 970,000 Vietnamese, and that is still being debated today. The three-volume
Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War, edited by Spencer Tucker, has been hailed as the most comprehensive reference work on that watershed event. Now Tucker has produced an abridged one-volume edition, a miracle of concision that includes virtually all the entries found in the parent volume, in condensed form.
Here are more than 900 alphabetically arranged entries--plus 39 primary source documents--that illuminate every aspect of the Vietnam War. There are entries on Buddhists, defoliation, post traumatic stress disorder, the fall of Ngo Dinh Diem, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, to name just a few. The volume covers military and domestic fronts; air, land, and sea campaigns and battles; weapons, strategies, and tactics; key Vietnamese and American figures; the anti-war movement and international repercussions of the war; and the impact of the war on film, art, literature, and society. The volume also includes important background information, such as the developments that lead to the US involvement in the war as well as postwar Vietnamese history to the present. A highlight of the book is Tucker's extensive coverage of both American and Vietnamese perspectives, and he has incorporated numerous entries by Vietnamese contributors.
The three-volume Encyclopedia is the finest source of information available on the Vietnam War. Now, with the one-volume Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War, everyone can own the definitive reference work on the pivotal event of modern American history.
Review
"A remarkable resource. As extensive as anything we'll likely see in several years."--Library Journal
"Comprehensive, detailed, and highly recommended. This superb reference work provides understanding and perspective on one of the greatest crises in U.S. history. Covers every conceivable aspect."--Booklist _
Review
"One of the outstanding features...is the attention given to the Vietnamese side, to the Vietnamese history and to the Vietnamese participants in the tragic events of the war."--
Times Literary Supplement"Insightful and carefully crafted to describe a debate rather than take sides in it....The 900-odd entries cover almost every imaginable aspect of the war and its impact on America, with a wealth of cultural and political context."--Washington Post
Synopsis
This comprehensive political, social, and military history of Vietnam has been condensed from a three-volume edition into this affordable, single volume, which includes more than 900 alphabetically arranged entries, 200 primary source documents, and more than 70 illustrations and maps.
About the Author
Spencer C. Tucker is Professor and holder of the John Biggs Chair in Military History at Virginia Military Institute. A graduate of VMI, he served as a captain in Army Intelligence in 1966-67. He is the author of several books on military history, including
Injured Honor: The Chesapeake-Leopard Affair of June 22, 1807 and
The European Powers in the First World War: An Encyclopedia. He lives in Lexington, Virginia.