Best Vietnamese Refugee Book
592309
I laughed and cried throughout my reading of the book. I don't normally read but this book kept me reading. It also gave me greater insight into how my parents struggled to get to Australia by boat to provide my brother and I with the quality of life we have now :) This book will make you feel very happy and appreciative. I recommend it to all.
4911843
post: Jan 3, 2010 7:29 AM PST
 N. Girod says:
When I read this book, I found it to be honest and just. I was never taught the Vietnamese side of their history, just the American and where 'we can do no wrong'. Yet war is war, no matter who is fighting it. Living right now with the Iraqian war still strong, I can only imagine the horrors of the Iraqian people that are not disclosed to us Americans. The author took no sides but just told her point of view of her life during the long two wars that destroyed her country. No favortism was cited with the Revolutionist beyond it being apparent they fought for their freedom against the French and the Americans.

The beauty of her country was so well written that I now would love to visit this country. Her description of their cuisine or her childhood landscape only wets my appetite to see Viet Nam for myself. According to the author, it was plentiful for all to live off of its riches, a life of simplicity mixed with traditions, that is, until the Indochina War followed by the American invasion disrupted its delicate balance.

What an incredible life to have lived with the constraints of war. I cannot imagine how I would personally survive a similar circumstances. The inner strength and uncontrolable sense of survival to live just leaves me speechless. I have heard from my paternal grandmother her stories of WWI and WWII she, too, had experienced but none of them match to the intensity of this one. After reading this book I no longer sweat over the little stuff and how fortunate I am to have a life surrounded by love and peace.

This book not is interesting but also an inspiration, I highly recommend it!!!!
2863966
This is a great book, and I highly recommend it. I know that it has received numerous awards for the writing and its historical value. Many Vietnam veterans have praised it.
634723
Refugee by Alan Gratz was published in 2017. This was a wonderful book that showcased the story of refugees from different time periods and circumstances, although the way all the stories are connected in the end is not as fantastic as it is stated on the cover of the book.
This book is a historical fiction book just like other titles by Alan Gratz such as Prisoner B-3087, Projekt 1065, and finally the book you are interested about Refugee. Refugee takes place in three main time periods. The first time period is Nazi Germany and it is centered around Josef and his family who are Jews living in Germany around the time that Kristallnacht takes place. During Kristallnacht their home is raided and Josefs father is taken away to a concentration camp. The second time period is Fidel Castro era Cuba around 1994 this time period focuses on Isabel, a young Cuban girl trying to escape Cuba with her family. During this time period Cubans are rioting in Havana and Fidel Castro issues a statement that any Cubans willing to leave Cuba could and they would not be punished by the government. The final time period is modern day Syria during the Syrian Civil War. This time periods main characters is Mahmoud and his family. Their family home was just recently bombed and destroyed so they begin their long journey from Syria to Germany.
Refugee is altogether a magnificent book that shows the struggles of refugees from the past and in the present all across the world and how much they have to go through.
1882116
This is a well written and important book. There are already some good reviews here. The Vietnam War is still controversial in the US, the recent PBS 10 part documentary brought back the intensity of the war and the resistance movement. It is important to have a good book like this that reveals the N. Vietnamese thinking and planning that went on. The incredible dedication and sacrifice of the N. Vietnamese and the Viet Cong were a large part of the story. 3.6 million people died in the war and a large % of them were fighting on that side or were civilians.

Many of my friends either went to Vietnam or refused and went to Canada. Three of my close friends died because of the war, one in Vietnam, one training pilots in Pensacola FL, and one by suicide after he came back. The antiwar movement was one of the most important social movements in the history of this country.

Midwest Independent Research, educational websites. Vietnam, mwir-vietnam.blogspot. There is a book list here.
4342065
I read this book while serving as a helicopter pilot in Vietnam in 1967.  I found the book in a Special Services Library.  My first thought was, "Has anyone in our government read this book?"  My second thought was, "Why hasn't EVERY commander in Vietnam been required to read this book?"
There were so many parallels to so many situations I observed in Vietnam that it was incredible.  Two that immediately came to mind were Khe Sanh and Dak To, both located in valleys surrounded by higher ground, safely accessible only by air and isolated from the nearest major support facilities.
We never benefitted from any of the lessons that the Viet Minh taught the French and we let the Viet Cong teach them to us all over again.
Bernard B. Fall wrote from the persective of a former member of the French military and continued to write throughout most of the American involvement.  He died covering the war in Vietnam.  Other books by Mr. Fall include: Vietnam Reader, Vietnam Witness, The Viet Minh Regime and Street Without Joy.
2489151
I really enjoyed this book on my visit to vietnam. This book is not for travellers who want to hold a "bible" with information about everything, as the book concentrates on the best that this wonderful country has to offer.

We liked that for each type of attraction (hotels, museums, restaurants, etc) we are given the best 10 options rather than having to surf through pages and pages of data.
2466044
This is the first book on the ARVN I bought, it is so good that I bought the books 'Angels in Red Hats', 'Vietnam Airborne' and 'Vietnam Marines 1965-1973' to learn more about these brave little soldiers. As usual, Americans blame all its failures in Vietnam on their allies - which had few opportunities to defend themselves from these charges. This is the book for the uninitiated reader who does not know the ARVN. As always, Gordon L. Rottman writes for all types of readers and is always very clear in his narrative. I loved the book and I became a fan of the armed forces of South Vietnam.

The plates are good as Osprey's plates always are, and the pictures are marvellous and rare. There are boxes with the Vietnamese terms translated to English, and one of those has the Vietnamese phonetic alphabet. Rottman also compares the capabilities of US and ARVN units, showing their numbers and equipments. A very good book. The author should make a Warrior title about the ARVN, just like he did about the NVA.

As the author states, in page 42:
 "If provided with effective leaders and adequate fire support, ARVN soldiers were as good as any in Asia. They were generally well equiped, and were particularly effective when US artillery and air support was available. The ARVN soldier demonstrated his qualities well during the costly 1968 Tet Counter-Offensive, and the defeat of the 1972 NVA Easter Offensive in the northern provinces; sadly, he was all too often failed by his higher command and by the politicians he fought for."
2887072
I'm sure this is the best book written by Mingfong Ho yet.  Some of her earlier novels like The Clay Marble are a bit creaky but this novel doesn't have a false note in it!  The story involves a girl who is caught up in the Khmer Rouge evacuation of Cambodia and is sent to work in a camp in the rural areas.  Some members of her family die while others survive.  Mingfong Ho worked in the refugee camps in Thailand for Cambodians and speaks Thai as well as Chinese and English.  She witnessed the lives of the Khmer people in refugee camps and heard their stories.  This all comes alive in the book and makes the story much more realistic than some other novels about the Khmer Rouge time.  She has also grown as a writer and communicate her story in a clear, descriptive manner.  There is no doubt that she is now a terrific children's novelist.
2704955
Great insight into the Vietnamese reaction to the Vietnam War.  I highly recommed this book to anyone traveling to Vietnam.
2334717
This book was wonderful. I enjoyed it very much. It is a must-have book for anyone that has had the experience of being in the Vietnam War, or any war. I recommend this to anyone that enjoys reading good books. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have, it quickly became one of my all-time favorites!
2726983
simply the best book i have read covering the vietnam conflict whether it be american or french . It reads like a war novel at its best, the difference being this account is fact. The book covers the reasons why,the build up,the complacency and finally the tragedy . One cannot but marvel at the tenacity of both sides aswell as the strength to endure such hardships. Why the americans had the arrogance to think it would be any different for them is disturbing as parralels can again be seen between the vietnam conflict and the current war in iraq.
988397
After ordering a hardcover copy from Amazon and waiting months for it to arrive (every couple of months, they'd delay it "another 6 to 8 weeks", I finally gave up and purchased a paperback copy of this cookbook. I'm so glad I did.

This is absolutely the best Vietnamese cookbook I've ever seen. The recipes numerous, excellent and easy to follow. There are some pictures of prepared recipes (I wish there were more). Routhier, a native of Saigon, also suggests several menus, from "three simple menus", "two average menus", "two elegant menus", "vegetarian menus", "a vietnamese buffet", a "beef i seven ways dinner party", and a "dinner party from a Vietnamese grill".

Routhier also gives some insight into Vietnamese traditions for meals, and explains how to order meals in Vietnamese restaurants. She gives an overview of what types of foods are likely to be offered in most restaurants.

If you like Vietnamese food, and you want a multitude of authentic recipes, this is the #1 resource.
3259456
One more reason to wonder why we brought so much suffering to the Vietnamese. This is a great book, similar to All Quiet on the Western Front. Too bad George Bush didn't read it at Yale. Might not have made a difference, I suppose.
2292510
This is the best book I've read about the experiences of our servicemen in Vietnam and what it was really like over there.  Kudos to Michael Cunningham for producing this well-written, straight-forward, and honest book.  I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone interested in reading about what our servicemen went through in Vietnam.
836957
I really enjoyed reading this book. I have always wanted to visit Vietnam and this book makes the whole trip seem so easy to plan. It goes through everything you will need to know when visiting Vietnam. It goes through how to get there and also does a deep dive in the culture. It also covers the major cities so that no matter where in Vietnam you are heading, this book will cover your needs. The descriptions are so detailed that I almost feel like I am already in Vietnam!
1330501
I learned about this author, and his book by seeing part of one of his lectures on television.  I sought out the book, and was not sorry I did.

I was a Marine Reconnaissance Team Leader, running the Arizona Territory, Dodge City, Happy Valley, Sherwood Forest, and the Laotian border, we knew no Vietnamese civilians, just the NVA, and VC.  I came home in 1970, I thought my war was over, I was wrong. I continued to struggle with my war, and when Saigon fell, part of me broke inside.  Going back to Vietnam twice since 2000, I met many of the Vietnamese who were unable to escape South Vietnam, and endured their painful conversion to Communism.

Quang Pham has written a book which could only be called powerful.  I have recommended it to all my friends, Veterans, or not, it presents lessons that need to be learned by America, and American's.  I wish I could have met his father, I think I would have liked him, I know that I respect him.

Easily the best book I read in the year 2005.  To Quang Pham I say Semper Fidelis, and I hope that "A Sense of Duty" is not his last book.