Book Description

The Vietnam War was, in the words of a preeminent scholar of the conflict (George C. Herring), "America's longest war." The Indochina conflict spanned the first generation of the larger Cold War and lasts to this day in American memory and cultural representation. Although the war remains a sensitive subject for many, a consensus exists that would echo the words of former Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara in his memoir, In Retrospect, "We were wrong, we were terribly wrong." The six volumes in this series pull together the best article literature on the History of American Involvement in Vietnam. The scholars writing in the first volume explore the roots of U.S. intervention, which followed in the wake of France's failed effort (supported and financed in Washington) to assert imperial control over Indochina. Volume II analyzed military aspects of the Vietnam War's history Volume V focuses on the lessons and legacies of the conflict, the source of a particularly sharp debate during the first administration of President Ronald W. Reagan. The final volume in the series analyzes the Vietnam War's extensive afterlife - in memory, film, literature, and popular discourse. Available individually by volume. Volume 1. The Origins of Intervention (0-8153-3531-8) Volume 2. Military Strategy and Escalation (0-8153-3532-6) Volume 3. Executive- Legislative Relations, Tracing the Impact of the War on U.S. Governmental Structures and Policies (0-8153-3533-4) Volume 4. The Diplomacy of War (0-8153-3534-2) Volume 5. The Anti-War Movement (0-8153-3535-0) Volume 6. Representation, Memories, and Legacies (0-8153-3536-9)