2 comments about The Black Prince And The Sea Devils: The Story Of Valerio Borghese And The Elite Units Of The Decima Mas.

1. Jack Greene and Alessandro Massignani's The Black Prince And The Sea Devils is the story of Prince Valerio Borghese and his infamous World War II Italian naval commando unit will intrigue any with a special interest in World War II history beyond the generalist topics and scope. Green has authored four previous military titles and Massignani brings with him a special focus on Italian naval history: the two draw upon official archival sources and veteran accounts on both sides to separate fact from fantasy.



2. Every major military in the world has it's special elite units. The British have their SAS. The Americans the SEALS, Rangers, and Special Forces. Strangely enough, this trend began with the Italian Navy. Their Decima MAS unit pioneered the concept of small, specially trained units that did damage to their enemies far beyond their size. Movie buffs will recognize their exploits as shown in the 1958 movie 'The Silent Enemy' where frogmen attack the HMS Valiant and the HMS Queen Elizabeth using specially modified torpedoes that they ride into the harbour.

   It is nice to see that the Italian military is portrayed here as something other than the bumbling fools so often shown in American films and books. This book treats the unit as they would any other unit, telling how it got started, their training, their failures and their successes. This book is also the basis for a new movie called 'The Sea Devils' although I understand that the project is now on hold.

2 comments about The Lincoln Family Album.

1. Being a Lincoln fan, I pride myself on keeping up on the latest books that come out, and usually, one way or another, end up purchasing them. So, imagine my surprise when I visited a local bookstore, and was browsing in its impressive Lincoln section to find this jew, "The Lincoln Family Album". What, a book that I hadn't heard of?
   
   At first, I thought it was just a simple recounting of the many familiar books with Lincoln photos in it. But upon glancing inside, I realized how wrong assumptions are. The pictures in this book are from the actual Lincoln photograph album, kept through the family generation after generation, until the last surviving member of the clan died in 1985. Up until then, the book lived in secrecy, but now, in this stunning paperback, the photographs have been reproduced. Each page contains a picture, and a small vignette that describes the person in the picture, and why it would be found in the Lincoln family album.
   
   I found myself engrossed, not only in the pictures, but the information contained in each page. For some reason, the pictures came more alive to me with this information than any other picture book of Lincoln. Especially touching are the pictures of Lincoln's kids, Tad, Willie, and Robert. As proud parents would, they are well-documented in this book.
   
   If you are a devotee of Lincoln, I highly recommend this book. With an engrossing first chapter that talks about how photography was catching on just as Lincoln became President, and a wealth of knowledge of the Lincoln family, this book is sure to please you!!



2. Mark Neely has compiled a fascinating collection of the Lincoln family's pictures from their family album. What's interesting is what is NOT included in the album: not many photographs of Abraham Lincoln, perhaps the most photographed president of the 19th century. But the pictures of his children and grandchildren are especially interesting and poignant, especially those of a grandson named Abraham (Robert's son) who died at 16 but who bore an uncanny likeness to his famous grandfather. An important addition to any serious Lincoln student's library.

1 comments about German Fighter Ace Werner Molders: An Illustrated Biography (Schiffer Military History).

1. Werner Mölders was as close as could be to a "good guy" among the German pilots. He developed several attack patterns.
   
   The book will satisfy anybody's curiosity about this airman.

4 comments about The Life of Mahatma Gandhi (Harper colophon books).

1. This biography of the immortal Indian spiritual leader by the far-left American journalist Louis Fischer was first published roughly 18 months after Gandhi's assassination in January 1948. It thus benefits and suffers from the closeness of the personal relationship between the subject and author, and its extremely limited temporal perspective.
   
   The author had two extended interviews with Gandhi at his ashram in May 1942 and June 1946. Not surprisingly, Fischer's physical descriptions are vivid and authentic. The reader can almost feel the enervating heat of India, taste the bland vegetarian cuisine, and above all see Gandhi's peculiar mannerisms and hear his sing-song vocal inflections. But Fischer is also much too close to the events that he writes about, and too emotionally involved with his subject. The twentieth century was blood-soaked and sparsely populated with significant political figures who sincerely preached peace and reconciliation. Nevertheless, the Gandhi that emerges from the pages of this biography is more painted icon than flesh-and-blood, although Fischer does describe him as a rather cold and inconsiderate husband to Kasturbai, his faithful, semi-literate wife of sixty-two years, while his falling out with his alcoholic and Muslim-convert eldest son, Harilal, is heart-breaking to read. Moreover, from the perspective of the early twenty-first century reader, two of the more interesting aspects of Gandhi's life and legacy are his impact on the civil rights movement in the United States, South Africa, and elsewhere, and the rise of modern India as a major global power. Obviously, given the publication date, none of this is considered in Fischer's work.
   
   Gandhi has been described as a saint who tried to become a politician (Gandhi himself said that it was the reverse). The man that Fischer describes was, in my opinion, more cult figure than saint. Gandhi's religious views were incredibly pragmatic and highly unorthodox. For instance, Fischer argues that Gandhi interpreted the Bhagavad-Gita - the most holy of Hindu texts - as an allegory that preaches "desirelessness" and pacifism although the story is literally about God commanding Arunja, a member of the Kshatriya warrior caste, to fight and kill to fulfill his caste obligation. And it was Gandhi who attacked the Hindu practice of outcastes or untouchables and even coined a new term for them, Harijan or Children of God, and later named his weekly newspaper after them. He established ashrams first in South Africa and later in India that are reminiscent of modern day cult compounds with communal eating, sleeping and bathing, making their own clothes, and practicing a bizarre amalgamation of Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and mysticism, all centered on Gandhi as leader-guru. There are probably a few places just like it today in Mendocino County.
   
   And yet Gandhi was a leader of unusual appeal and effectiveness. His policy of Satyagraha (truth-force or love-force - or what we may call civil disobedience) triumphed against the British and Afrikaaners in South Africa and he had full confidence that it would ultimately succeed in his native India and around the world wherever injustice could be found. Whitehall had directly and closely ruled India for over half-a-century when Gandhi emerged as a powerful force for reform and home rule. Winston Churchill was dismayed in 1931 by "the nauseating and humiliating spectacle of this one-time Inner Temple lawyer, now seditious fakir, striding half-naked up the steps of the Viceroy's palace, there to negotiate and to parley on equal terms with the representative of the King-Emperor."
   
   The irony of this book is that Gandhi, undoubtedly one of the giants of the twentieth century whose reputation will likely only grow in the coming decades and centuries, in the end saw his own life as a tremendous failure. He dedicated himself to Indian self-purification, redemption, and honorable self-rule (which he called Swaraj). Fischer stresses that Gandhi had no desire to conquer or defeat the British, nor did he wish to see a small group of Indian elites take over the government. Gandhi's program was essentially a liberal religious movement; the fall of British rule would merely be a necessary by-product, not the end-state. The goal was a unified India of high-caste Hindus, Harijans (untouchables), Muslims, Sikhs and Christians living modestly and peacefully in simple villages wearing khadi (homespun fabric) loin clothes and shawls. Clearly, things did not turn out according to plan.
   
   Nothing pained Gandhi more deeply than the Hindu/Sikh versus Muslim violence that accompanied independence and ultimately partition in 1947. Gandhi fought tenaciously to keep India united. He fasted and essentially threatened his own death if the leader of the untouchables, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, did not back down from a primary voting scheme for Harijan participation in the Hindu voting bloc. And Gandhi, a man of unnatural peace and forgiveness, reserved his most powerful words of insult and scorn for Mohamed Ali Jinnah, leader of the Muslim League and staunch supporter of a separate and independent Pakistan.
   
   Indeed, Fischer correctly concludes that "[i]ndependence brought sadness to the architect of independence. The Father of his Country was disappointed in his country...Millions adored the Mahatma, multitudes tried to kiss his feet or the dust of his footsteps. They paid him homage and rejected his teachings. They held his person holy and desecrated his personality. They glorified his shell and trampled his essence. They believed in him but not his principles."
   
   I learned a lot from this book and enjoyed it immensely.



2. This is simply put one of the best books I have ever read. Half of the reason is of course the topic - Mohandas Gandhi, who is one of the most important religious persons to have lived. The other half is that it is well-written, packed with information, and by an accomplished author. While Fischer's shorter book, "Gandhi: His life and message" is more concise and also a triumph, anyone who has read it or is a Gandhi enthusiast should acquire a copy of this book and read it.



3. This particular biography of the Mahatama is insightful and powerfully written. Fischer analyses Gandhi in a way that allows you to discover Gandhi for yourself and see connections between the world in which Gandhi lived and the man he became. It provides numerous insights that Gandhi's own humility may not have allowed him in his own autobiography. It does start out kind of slow, but Fischer's analysis of Gandhi picks up momentum after the first few chapters and becomes a page turner. Highly inspiring for those who want to further understand Gandhi's views and see them in relation to the world. Highly recommended!



4. Louis Fischer does his subject justice with a fine account of Gandhi's life. Despite the long duration of the Mahatma's struggle, the author keeps the book interesting pretty much throughout. Fischer's two first hand accounts of his meetings with Gandhi serve as a plesent break in the course of the book, giving it greater life, as well as providing a more personal insight into Gandhi. Thankfully the author remains well clear of blind adoration for the man, highlighting both his flaws and weaknesses. The only short coming is that the book was written before the rise of M.L. King and Nelson Mandela, thus fails to address the full influence Gandhi had and will have beyond India. Overall, I whole heartedly recommend this book of such an important subject, which was also the inspiration for the film.

4 comments about Robert E. Lee: Icon for a Nation.

1. General Lee was a trator to this country and his training, and he would have replaced the Black-American slaves with the Irish serfs of Europe, according to Elizabeth B. Pryor, in her study of Lee, in Reading The Man. Please only recommend historal facts to me, and not some idealized opinion. Lee was a West Point trained soldier, and he selected personal comfort and convience over duty. Am I to believe that Ms. Pryor is incorrect?



2. the author is a good writer, entertaining with an obvious wealth of knowledge of the subject. I couldn't imagine how the author could get a picture of Lee into that small book when it took Freeman four volumes, but it was well worth the purchase, I would highly recommend it.



3. It is easy to overlook the many contributions that non-Americans have made to the study of the American Civil War. Brian Holden Reid's outstanding study "Robert E. Lee: Icon for a Nation" brings an informed, fresh and balanced perspective to bear upon the Confederacy's greatest general. Reid is Professor of American History and Military Institutions and Head of the Department of War Studies at Kings College, London. He has taught military strategy and tactics and written extensively about America's Civil War.
   
   Any new study of Lee must work on two levels. First, of course, it must examine Lee himself, his life, his career, and his generalship. Second, any study must come to terms with the extensive writing and radically shifting perspectives about Lee over the years. Following the Civil War, Lee quickly became an icon to Southern partisans in the "Lost Cause" tradition. His character and success, for a time, against long military odds soon elevated Lee into a figure respected and revered by many Americans, north and south. Then, in mid-20th Century a reaction set in against Lee, questioning some of the mythology that had grown around him and challenging his agressive conduct of the War, his focus on the Eastern theater, his alleged lack of broad strategic vision, and the high casualty rate to which he subjected the Army of Northern Virginia, among other things. The reasons underlying the reassessment were complex. They included correcting an overly iconic and uncritical account, the changing perspective with which Americans viewed the Civil War, and a general and, I think, unhappy tendency to debunk and to criticise important historical figures.
   
   In clear, elegant prose, Reid examines Lee and Lee historiography. Although Reid avoids hero worship, he clearly admires greatly Robert E. Lee as a person and as a general. He finds that much, but not all, of the traditional picture of Lee has merit: he was an imaginative, agressive, savvy, and gifted commander who, importantly, inspired the love and the trust of his men. He fought and won many battles against long odds and prolonged the life of the Confederacy, giving it its best chance to achieve independence. Reid is far from uncritical as he points to flaws in, among other things, the command structure of Lee's army, the commander's frequent over-confidence, his tendency to overdelegate to subordinates, his conduct of the Battle of Gettysburg, and the failure to make the most of his opportunites in battles such as Seven Days, Second Manassas, Fredricksburg, and Chancellorsville. For all these faults, Lee emerges in this study as a remarkable, charismatic commander whom Reid believes is properly regarded as one of the greatest in history.
   
   The book opens with a chapter on Lee the icon with a summary of how historians of the "Lost Cause" school have viewed him, under the influence of the writings of Confederate General Jubal Early. The book then discusses Lee's pre-Civil War career, focusing on his service in Mexico, but gathers force in its consideration of Lee's three-year career as the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee's assumption of command in June, 1862, and the battles for which he is famous -- Seven Days, Second Manassas, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness Campaign, Petersburg, and Appatomatox, are discussed clearly and with sufficient detail. Reid keeps his and the reader's focus on the main themes of his study: showing Lee's greatness as a leader but his shortcomings as well.
   
   In common with most books about Lee, his military exploits are discussed in detail but we see little of his inmost thoughts and feelings. Lee was a highly reserved individual. I would have also liked more emphasis on Lee's pre-Civil War career and, particularly, a fuller discussion of Lee's life and career as President of Washington University following the Civil War. The book includes some basic maps of the key theatres of Lee's operations -- placed at the beginning of the book to avoid cluttering the text -- a good, basic bibliography, and no footnotes.
   
   Reid has written an excellent study of a great commander which argues convincingly that Lee deserves most of the esteem that he has traditionally received. This book will appeal to serious students of the Civil War.
   
   Robin Friedman



4. At the end of the American Civil War Robert E. Lee had only five years to live. The heart problems that caused him to spend the battle of the North Anna River in an ambulance killed him. ==In the years following his reputation as a battlefield leader was heavily promoted by writers lamenting the lost cause of Southern independence. These included not only Southerners but Northernors as well.
   
   In this book Brian Holden Reid, Professor of American History at King's College London, writes from the vantage point of a disinterested outsider to argue that Lee was one of the great commanders of all time. He does not claim that Lee didn't have faults. Everyone does, but that the overall generalship of General Lee ranks him among the best.
   
   The American Civil War took place at a transition point in military affairs. The war before (Mexico, 1843) and the war that followed (World War I). The author contends that Lee was among the first of the modern generals. If the armies had listened to him during World War I, it probably wouldn't have turned into the mess that it was.

5 comments about Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Penguin Classics).

1. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl: This book is diffficult to read because of the horrible reminders of
   the wretched life of American slaves. The book is so
   well written, beautiful prose, detailed descriptions
   of rememberances that I am sure were difficult to
   relive. I highly recommend this wonderful book to any
   one.



2. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl / 0-674-44746-8
   
   It is amusing to note that Jacobs' autobiography was published just prior to Stowe's famous Uncle Tom's Cabin. Stowe's work, for all it's virtues, is (to modern eyes, at least) painfully didactic, frequently breaking the narrative to tell the reader what they are meant to take from a scene. Jacobs' Incidents, however, is written freely and easily, relating the salient points of her life, rarely breaking narrative to tell the reader what to think. It is merely presented, as is, and is immensely more readable than other contemporary works. Unfortunately, Jacobs' work was passed over as too salacious - she actually includes men in her novel, and not all her encounters are strictly 'forced', in the sense that some liaisons are contracted for convenience and safety, if not always for love.
   
   Amusingly, these "flaws" in Jacobs' character make her narrative that more interesting and insightful to read. It is relevant and worth knowing that slaves sometimes felt obligated to please certain men in order to secure safety or basic necessities. Jacobs determination to survive and thrive within the system that oppresses her causes us to admire her and to enjoy her narrative as we hope for some kind of happiness and success in her life of few options, none of them good. If you have any interest at all in slavery or the American Civil War, I highly recommend this narrative.



3. I had no idea that this book would be as compelling as it was. Really, it was a bit of a pleasant surprise. I bought it because it was required reading for a class, but ended up liking it... Who knew?



4. It's obvious the difficulty slaves endured. Ironic, but she endures a great deal more than most. How her story ends is not predictable.



5. Concerning this edition (the book is a must read)... Dover's thrift editions are just that--thrifty. The text is close together and the overall readability of the edition is fair. It works, but I'd like to see Oxford or Penguin make a "classic" edition with a scholary introduction, footnoting and contextual information like 19th century reviews, etc... A good edition, needs improvement, but then it wouldn't have a "thrifty" price!

5 comments about Stonewall Jackson: The Black Man's Friend.

1. Stonewall Jackson is a legend as a military man, but this book explores another side of him: his dedication to helping the slaves in his hometown of Lexington, VA. The author makes a strong case that Jackson was inspired by his Christian convictions to provide religious education to Black people in his town. He did this in spite of Virginia laws that forbade educating slaves. He and his wife and a handful of others knowingly broke the law in order to keep a Sunday school going for the Black people of Lexington.
   
   Other books have already discussed this, including
   Gallant Mrs Stonewall: A Novel Based on the Lives of General and Mrs. Stonewall Jackson, written 60 years ago. But this book goes into this part of Jackson's life in depth and also follows some of the beneficiaries of his Sunday classes into their lives after the Civil War. They expressed gratitude to Jackson and contributed to honoring his memory in touching ways.
   
   Many of us have wondered how Christian southerners could justify the practice of slavery. Jackson apparently recognized that it was the status quo and thought it might be part of God's plan that was beyond our knowing, but unlike many less brave citizens, he worked to make life (and theoretically the afterlife) better for the slaves.
   
   Richard Williams assumes that readers will agree with him on the virtues of Christian education, and in some places his pious tone sounds a bit high-minded. On the other hand, he quotes 19th-century writers with appropriate notes about the attitudes of the time so that readers aren't put off by their lack of 21st-century sensibilities. All in all, Williams presents a fascinating collection of research on Jackson's selfless dedication to a cause that was ahead of his time, and yet timeless.



2. This book is very informative and very accurate. It is told from the viewpoint of the Black People. I would recommend it to everyone who is interested in the truth about the history of the Civil War and Stonewall's compassion for the Black People.



3. REJOICE IN THAT DAY WHEN THEY CAST OUT YOUR NAME AS EVIL
   
   REJOICE
   
   This book has had my name on it and I had a hard time finding it. The book is dear to my heart in that I do not think the whole truth has been told about the South and the Civil War. Somehow I may be related to Stonewall Jackson. Most of my ancestors were protestants from Northern Ireland as were Jackson's.
   
   This is the book to read to reveal a gentler glimpse of slavery in the Old South. Stonewall Jackson broke a Virginia law by teaching his slaves to read and teaching many others about Christianity. Mr. Williams presents this untold story of the famed Confederate General as Stonewall's most enduring legacy. Many descendants of Jackson's black Sunday School class completed divinity studies and have pastored untold hundreds of others in the way of the cross. The blacks of Lexington, Virginia loved Stonewall Jackson and that love was passed down for generations to people like Richard Williams.
   
   The book is a true gem, not to be missed for a completed view of slavery in the Old South. Thank you so much, Mr. Williams.
   
   This side of the Civil War story has not been told. Little do you know the real reason why Thomas Jackson left the U.S. military. His commanding officer was using his influence, as we would say today, to obtain sexual favors from a little slave girl. Such were some who liberated the slaves and their descendants are here with us today. The abolitionist movement was christian supposedly too, yet what a huge mess they made in my neck of the woods. O.K. Being a christian man of honor, (would that there were more these days), he quietly left the service, though his immediate family knew the real reasons. Most people see white southerners as hypocrites. We live in the bible belt, but we're not really christians in that many of us had slaves at one time. I could go on and on about this subject. Careful who you listen to, careful who you ally yourselves to; 99.99999999999999999999999% of self-professed christians ARE NOT.
   
   IF the truth be told.



4. This is an excellent book about a side that most people do not know about Stonewall Jackson. Not only was he a great general, but he was also a great man and christian. I found this book easy to read and really enjoyed it.



5. I find this book extremely interesting. The other side of General T. Jackson and the work he accomplished within the Confederacy. A must for the students of Stonewall Jackson.

2 comments about Pigboat 39: An American Sub Goes to War.

1. I came across this book by accident while looking through reviews of other Amazon reviewers. It is an interesting account of U.S. submarine S-39 covering a period from roughly early 1939 to mid-1942 when the S-39 was lost due to running aground on a reef. This is a narrative account moving between crew members, and sometimes the women they left behind, as the story moves forward.
   
   Many of the crew members were children of the depression who joined the Navy because it furnished room, board, and clothing along with steady pay. It also furnished a chance to see the world, and service on submarines meant extra pay and a certain elite attitude. Men who qualified, usually after 6 months aboard, could wear the submariner's dolphins. The officers and men on S boats lived together elbow-to-elbow in cramped quarters and developed a certain esprit de corps. The early part of the book covers service in the Asiatic Fleet prior to the outbreak of war, and the expectations that war was on the horizon.
   
   The S class of submarines were obsolete, and due to be replaced by the new fleet submarines, but as a previous reviewer pointed out, you have to go with what you've got. When the war started, the S-39 made its first combat patrol and sank an enemy cargo ship that was part of the force invading the Philippines. The book gives a good picture of conditions. With the Philippines being lost, the S-39 made a second patrol ending in Java, and from there a third patrol (during which it sank an enemy tanker) ending in Australia.
   
   Operations of the submarine force moved to Brisbane, Australia, from where the S-39 made its fourth, and then its fifth patrol during which it ran aground and was destroyed. It would be nice to think that everyone survived, but the men went on to serve on other submarines, and many did not survive the war. The book was prepared by the wife of one of the survivors using extensive reference material including interviews/correspondence with other survivors. It is an interesting account of day to day events including shared hardships aboard and comradery ashore. Some men went to great lengths not to miss the boat when it sailed, or to catch up if separated.
   
   There is a short afterward that covers the fate of a few of the individuals. Most of the individuals were in the same age group as one of my uncles who served in the Army during the war. Their ranks dwindle as the years pass.
   
   As an additional feature, the book provides accounts of real observations of the poverty in China during that time period, the hatred that some Filipinos had for Americans, and the slavery/servitude of natives in Indonesia under Dutch rule. In one case a woman was riding in a rickshaw in China when the man pulling the rickshaw collapsed and died. Other people just ignored his body, going around him on the road, and other coolies immediately solicited the woman's business because they wanted the fare she would pay at her destination. Life was cheap.



2. This fine book, written by the wife of a submarine officer who served on S-39, provides a unique look at the lost world of late-1930's submarine duty in the US Navy's *Asiatic Fleet* as well as early war patrols. Tales of pre-War submarine training and Navy life and liberty in the Philippines and China set the backdrop for the story. Unlike some WWII submarine books this one includes lots of perspective from the sailors, and their wives and sweethearts, as well as the ship's officers.

   In December 1941, S-39 and several other *pigboats* (a term for the already obsolete S boats used by sailors on the then-modern *fleet boats* which, themselves, came to be called pigboats by the nuclear-powered submarine generation) made the first war patrols. When it became clear the Japanese would conquer the Philippines S-39 withdrew, shooting, from the ruined Cavite Navy base near Manila: foraging for supplies among island villages, sinking two Japanese ships, suffering depth charge and bomb attacks, refitting in soon-to-be-conquered Dutch-dominated Indonesia and finally limping into Fremantle, Australia on one engine. By March 1942, S-39 had three war patrols under her belt.

   A few months later, after extensive repairs and operating from Brisbane with a new skipper, S-39 makes a short breakdown plagued patrol and then, on her fifth patrol in August 1942, runs hopelessly aground off a remote island near New Guinea. Unable to re-float the stranded sub, S-39's crew scuttles the vessel and swims through dangerous stormy waves to a nearby reef to await rescue from an Australian destroyer. After some of the crew spends the night standing on a reef in water that rises above their waist during high tide, everyone makes it safely back to Australia. In an afterword we learn, sadly, that both of S-39's skippers and several other crew members we've come to know through this book perish in other submarines lost during the War.

   There are useful sketch maps of each patrol. The best feature of the book may be the 57 black and white photos. Most of them are of the men whose words and actions are portrayed in the book. I found myself referring to them often as the story unfolded.

   I recommend this book highly to everyone interested in naval and submarine history. It's a chance to look beyond the *big picture* of strategies and admirals to recall the importance of the day-to-day struggle to persevere and succeed even when circumstances or equipment are not ideal. Even though S-39 was not the ideal vessel to aggressively pursue the Imperial Japanese Navy in early 1942, her officers and crew lived by a code articulated, many years later, by none other than Miss Piggy: *You gotta go with whatcha got.*

5 comments about The Cat from Hue: A Vietnam War Story.

1. I was an infantryman with 2/8, 1st Cav Div in Vietnam. I have read several accounts of the activities in Vietnam, and I must say that John Laurence's work came closer to accurately discribing the intensity of battle than any work I have read. I was in the battle on FSB Illingworth on April 1, 1970, which was mentioned in the book. That battle had previously only been described by Army reports in 'Incusion' and those were not accurately reported because no writer was on the scene. Army reports of the incident are inacurate. Though Mr. Laurence and his crew were not on Illingworth, they more accurately portrayed the intensity of the battle than the reports from the Army. I, along with others, are trying to bring the events of Vietnam into clearer view through a blog that I started at http://www.we-were-soldiers.com/.
   John Laurence reported accurately, and with emotion the events he witnessed in Vietnam. His skilled weaving of the stories with his life story is informative, touching, and well worth spending time to read.



2. Despite its intimidating length, I plunged in nonetheless and prepared to plow through it as fast as possible. By the time I was halfway through I was rationing the pages because I didn't want it to end. If I was teaching a course on the Vietnam War, I would make The Cat From Hue required reading, along with Caputo's A Rumor of War, Fitzgerald's Fire on the Lake, and Karnow's history.



3. As a Brit, I was unfamiliar with Lawrence's reporting work, but was intrigued by the subject, the title and mostly favourable reviews.
   
   It was definitely a worthwhile and entertaining read (even at >800 pages) and, although far from a conventional history, it would definitely make my top twenty list of Vietnam books.
   
   As has been mentioned elsewhere, it does stylistically fall somewhere between 'We were soldiers once...' and 'Dispatches', although both of those are truly exceptional, for different reasons, compared with TCFH. No mean comparison, though.
   
   Lawrence's recollections are about his personal experiences in Vietnam and the (mostly correspondents/photographers) people he knew there. It's not an attempt at Big Picture history and is none the worse for that. Lawrence talks candidly about his own drink and drug use and the book has an honest feel to it, IMHO.
   
   Lawrence writes well and vividly, as one would expect, as makes his recollections seem like yesterday, which one might not. Characters such as Sean Flynn, Dana Stone and Tim Page are vividly brought to life.
   
   I doubt whether journalists covering current war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan are afforded the same access to the front lines as Lawrence and his peers were given in Vietnam: not a criticism, just an observation on changed times.
   
   It probably could have been edited down a bit, but I still found it a humane and compelling read. Highly recommended.



4. Very long but worth it if you want to know many of the personalities reporting the war in the Nam. Follows most aspects of the war from near the beginning with a green Laurence till the end and John as an old salt. Better and more human than other vietnam memiors.



5. There are lots of great things about this book, but what I enjoyed most is that it covers two distinct but interrelated subjects: The Vietnam War from the perspective of the grunts on the front lines and journalism during the war. Both subjects are covered in vivid detail, making the entire book enlightening, informative, and even entertaining. The Cat from Hue is a history book and an autobiography all at once, written in prose that flows well and makes the reader want more. And since it's 800+ pages, there is plenty more. Anyone with even the remotest interest in the Vietnam War should definitely read this book, even if you think you already know everything there is to know about that chapter of history.

No comments about Defenders of Fortress Europe: The Untold Story of the German Officers during the Allied Invasion.