From School Library Journal
Grade 7-9–Corona examines American involvement in Vietnam as a cornerstone of our Cold War containment policies. She explores the "flawed vision" of the communist threat that was the foundation of U.S. foreign policy and the American failure to understand that the Vietnamese were primarily interested in ending foreign domination of their country. She describes the Vietnamese struggle to oust the French and the increasing American efforts to defeat Ho Chi Minh and install a regime friendly to our interests. The author includes material about military, diplomatic, and political actions in both countries and discusses how the U.S.S.R. and China influenced the conflict. There are numerous sidebars about important people, battles, and events. Average-quality, black-and-white photos and maps add little to the text. Corona is not an objective observer. She is highly critical of American policies and actions and glosses over North Vietnam's human-rights abuses and mistreatment of American POWs. This lack of objectivity will hinder students' ability to understand either the Vietnam War or its relationship to the Cold War. Debbie Levy's
The Vietnam War (Lerner, 2003) also views the conflict from a Cold War perspective, but in a much more objective manner, making it a better choice.
–Mary Mueller, Rolla Junior High School, MO Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
