A Short History of the Vietnam War

A Short History of the Vietnam War Gordon Kerr 5/5

My major problem with this work is the title---it is an impossibility. As the author himself shows, the events leading to, during and and resulting from the Vietnam War are complex, involved and about as convoluted as possible. But still, I had to admit that the author delivers just what he promised.

=== The Good Stuff ===

* Gordon Kerr writes well. His book is a joy to read. He makes his points clearly and succinctly, and provides some background for how he reached those conclusions. There is none of the academic nonsense of 200 word sentences and obscure vocabulary- Kerr impresses his readers through quality of prose and logical deductions.

* Kerr tries mightily to put the Vietnam War into context. He examines 2000 years of SE Asian history, and looks at the politics and motivations of various nations, including France, the US, Russian, and China in starting and prolonging military action in Vietnam. During the war itself, the author discusses US and world politics, the American protest movement, Watergate, poverty and many other ancillary issues that had a major effect on how the US prosecuted the war.

* There is very little purely military action described in the book. The military side of the Tet and Linebacker campaigns are described in a few paragraphs. Kerr is far more interested in the how these campaigns affected the political side of the war.

* This is not a “conventional” history book. Kerr takes opinions on many of the issues, and primarily presents his interpretation of events. For example, the author believes that Kennedy was willing to escalate the war in Vietnam as a way to draw attention away from his failures in Cuba. While this is certainly a possibility, it is by no means a “proven” historical fact. Kerr treats it as such, and does not spend pages describing other possible explanations. Depending on your preferences as a reader, you will either appreciate this or despise it.

=== The Not-So-Good Stuff ===

* My biggest complaint is the scope of the book. In some ways, Vietnam war has had more influence on the world that WWII. It showed the benefits, limitations and consequences of “war” between superpowers armed with nuclear weapons. The war highlighted shortcomings in the American political process, and probably influenced future US geopolitical actions. This list is very long, and any of these topics could easily fill a book all on its own. As I reader, I could almost feel Kerr wringing his hands over how much of any of these areas to include in a “short” history.

I offer this complaint with no idea of how to solve it. Kerr did not set out to write “A Very Long and Complicated History of Every Event that Influenced or Was Caused by The Vietnam War”, and I probably wouldn’t want to read it if he did. It is, however, frustrating to the reader to deal with numerous dead ends.

* Finally, Kerr is opinionated. He mentions many possibilities, but does not pursue them, or even offer an especially strong defense of his opinion. Did Nixon finally throw in a losing hand just to get the US out of Vietnam? Was it good politics? Did it tarnish American credibility going forward? Did it matter? Kerr postulates that Nixon was distracted by Watergate, and as a result was not as attentive to Vietnam is its final days. Certainly possible, but not the only explanation for the US “withdrawl”.

=== Summary ===
I liked the book, and enjoyed reading it. By presenting one story line and sticking with it, Kerr at least provides one possible analysis of Vietnam and its causes and consequences. He does not get all tied up in knots the way other books on the subject have, but instead makes his point and plows onward. Casual and serious history fans will likely enjoy the book, although may find its limited scope frustrating.

A helpful, concise book about the Vietnam War. It is easily digestible so that even a layperson with little knowledge comes away with a basic understanding.

Great overview.