Rolling Thunder in a Gentle Land: the Vietnam War Revisited

From the Colonial War with France in the 1940s and 50s, through to the final evacuation of Saigon and beyond, each chapter of Rolling Thunder in a Gentle Land: The Vietnam War Revisited, focuses on a different aspect of the Vietnam War. The 15 chapters are written by a diverse set of expert authors including participants in the war, journalists and historians who give startling and, in some cases exclusive, insights into one of the most controversial conflicts of the 20th century. Officers from both the NVA and ARVN take a first-hand look at the strategy and tactics of both sides and give critical assessments of where the war went wrong; Le Ly Hayslip, a Vietnamese civilian trapped between the Viet Cong and Southern authorities provides a harrowing account of life for the typical South Vietnamese civilian caught up in the war; and acclaimed historians and journalists, such as Bernard Edelman and Arnold Isaacs, take a critical look at the many aspects of the war from the river war and the air war through to the strategy and doctrine used by the USA forces. Illustrated with contemporary colour photography that evocatively complements the text, this book will show the Vietnam War in a whole new light even for those who have 'read it all' before.

TOC: Contributors /Chronology /Introduction: An American War? /The French Indochina War /Fight for the Long Haul /The South Road /The War Outside Vietnam /A View from the Other Side of the Story /Caught in the Crossfire /Diggers and Kiwis /The Conduct of War /On the Ground /"Swatting Flies with a Sledgehammer" /Battle for Mekong /Tactics in a Different War /The Living Room War /The Final Act - And After /Endnotes /Bibliography /Glossary /Index