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A Better War: The Unexamined Victories and Final Tragedy of America's Last Years in Vietnam

Neglected by scholars and journalists alike, the years of conflict in Vietnam from 1968 to 1975 offer surprises not only about how the war was fought, but about what was achieved. Drawing from thousands of hours of previously unavailable (and still classified) tape-recorded meetings between the highest levels of the American military command in Vietnam, A Better War is an insightful, factual, and superbly documented history of these final years. Through his exclusive access to authoritative materials, award-winning historian Lewis Sorley highlights the dramatic differences in conception, conduct, and-at least for a time-results between the early and later years of the war. Among his most important findings is that while the war was being lost at the peace table and in the U.S. Congress, the soldiers were winning on the ground. Meticulously researched and movingly told, A Better War sheds new light on the Vietnam War.  more

  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Oct-17-2009

Simply the truth.

Thanks to Lewis Sorley. This is an objective history. The truth is very difficult to bear. God bless the men and women who fought for the Republic of South Vietnam.JR

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Oct-13-2009

Relevent for today

As a student of history and war, this book is relevent today. Excellent read with details not collated in other books...must read for students and Officers.

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Jul-08-2009

The other side of the story

Good book. Some of the reviewers who didn't like the book make some valid points but overall the book was good (not great). Yes, Sorley worships Abrams but I think the point is that one good man can make a big difference. That's the power of good, effective leadership (see General Petreaus in...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: May-04-2009

Defeat from the jaws of victory

Superb analytical account of Creighton Abrams efforts to turn the war in America's favour. Lewis Sorley's access to classified Abrams documents, staff conferences,briefings etc places him in a unique position to be able to give the reader an insight into Abrams thinking as never before....

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Jul-24-2008

About time

Most Americans refer to the "Vietnam War" as if it was a single conflict. But no; defined by time alone, there were three distinct "Vietnam's." A Better War focuses on the last of these, the period around 1970, when we had the war virtually won but elected to leave instead.Note to Author: It's no...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Jan-25-2008

Outstanding

A Better War is an outstanding work of history. Sorley, through extensive research and interviews, takes us inside the latter years of the American involvement in Vietnam. Sorley weaves facts, statistics, and personal glimpses seamlessly. While the topic is dense I found myself easily moving...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Jun-29-2007

The Missing Piece to the Puzzle

I finished reading "A Better War" by Lewis Sorley - it is subtitled "the unexamined victories and final tragedy of America's last years in Vietnam". I have been searching for answers to some of the questions that have bothered me for over 30 years: how could we win the battles and lose the...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Apr-29-2007

First Rate!

Reading "A Better War" was a sad experience for this reviewer. For one, BW makes it crystal clear that we lost a war we could have either won or exited with an honorable truce. For another, this reviewer was troubled by some truly acerbic earlier reviews that do not seem justified. That aside, BW...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Mar-30-2007

A brilliant fresh view

I teach a course on the Vietnam War and thought I knew something about the subject. The author's carefully documented analysis, making use of much of the newly-available sources from both sides (all sides) makes it clear that Westmoreland's attrition strategy was never the only choice open to...

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  • From: Amazon
  • Posted: Feb-21-2007

The unfinished work in Vietnam

With the replacement of Westmoreland by Abrams in Vietnam, the strategy difference was obvious. Policies changed from a strategy of coercion and enforcement to a strategy of truly winning hearts and minds. The solution to counterinsugency, especially in rural popular revolutions, is not...

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