{"title":"Robert K Brigham","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"guerrilla-diplomacy-book-robert-k-brigham-9780801433177","title":"Guerrilla Diplomacy","description":"In 1960 revolutionaries in South Vietnam created the National Liberation Front, a political and military organization committed to overthrowing the Saigon government and liberating Vietnam south of the 17th parallel. The role of the NLF during the war has been hotly debated, with officials in Washington claiming from the outset that the NLF was merely a puppet of Hanoi. Based on over 100 interviews with former Communist cadre and high ranking Party officials, as well as extensive archival research in Vietnam, Brigham provides an account of the actions of the NLF and encourages a reassessment of the whole conflict. Brigham assesses the impact of the NLF's diplomatic strategy on the conduct and outcome of hostilities, explores the origin and pursuit of its policy objectives and defines its true relationship with North Vietnam. He contends that the NLF's success in convincing the world that it was independent of Hanoi was critical in upsetting the political and military balance in South Vietnam and frustrating the US war effort. In addition, he argues that differences in goals among Communists - building socialism in the north, liberating the south - resulted in disagreements over responses to American intervention, and he shows how these differences entered into foreign relations and seriously undermined revolutionary efforts.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49615012823313,"sku":"GOR013753429","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0801433177.jpg?v=1750702972"},{"product_id":"iraq-vietnam-and-the-limits-of-american-power-book-robert-k-brigham-9781586484996","title":"Iraq, Vietnam, and the Limits of American Power","description":"Since the first days of the Iraqi invasion, supporters of  the war have cautioned the public not to view this conflict  as another Vietnam. They rightfully point to many  important distinctions. There is no unified resistance in  Iraq. No political or religious leader has been able to galvanize  opposition to U.S. intervention the way that Ho  Chi Minh did in Vietnam. And it is not likely that 580,000  American troops will find their way to Iraq. However, there are two similarities that may dwarf  the thousands of differences. First, in Iraq, like Vietnam,  the original rationale for going to war has been discredited  and public support has dwindled. Second, in both  cases the new justification became building stable societies.  There are enormous pitfalls in America's nation  building efforts in Iraq as there were in Vietnam. But it is  the business we now find ourselves in, and there is no  easy retreat from it morally. As American frustration  increases, some policy makers are making the deadly  mistake of approaching problems in Iraq as if we are facing  them for the first time. It is crucial that we apply the  lessons of Vietnam wisely and selectively.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49615746105617,"sku":"GOR006954056","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ WELL_READ \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49905133158673,"sku":"GOR013810860","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ WELL_READ \/ SBYB","offer_id":51876768252177,"sku":"CIN1586484990A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":53396895105297,"sku":"CIN1586484990VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":53428759134481,"sku":"CIN1586484990G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1586484990.jpg?v=1750829918"},{"product_id":"arvn-book-robert-k-brigham-9780700614332","title":"ARVN","description":"Scorned by allies and enemies alike, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was one of the most maligned fighting forces in modern history. Cobbled together by U.S. advisers from the remnants of the French-inspired Vietnamese National Army, it was effectively pushed aside by the Americans in 1965. When toward the end of the war the army was compelled to reassert itself, it was too little, too late for all concerned. In this first in-depth history of the ARVN from 1955 to 1975, Robert Brigham takes readers into the barracks and training centers of the ARVN to plumb the hearts and souls of these forgotten soldiers. Through his masterly command of Vietnamese-language sources - diaries, memoirs, letters, oral interviews, and more - he explores the lives of ordinary men, focusing on troop morale and motivation within the context of traditional Vietnamese society and a regime that made impossible demands upon its soldiers. Offering keen insights into ARVN veterans' lives as both soldiers and devout kinsmen, Brigham reveals what they thought about their American allies, their Communist enemies, and their own government. He describes the conscription policy that forced these men into the army for indefinite periods with a shameful lack of training and battlefield preparation and examines how soldiers felt about barracks life in provinces far from their homes. He also explores the cultural causes of the ARVN's estrangement from the government and describes key military engagements that defined the achievements, failures, and limitations of the ARVN as a fighting force. Along the way, he explodes some of the myths about ARVN soldiers' cowardice, corruption, and lack of patriotism that have made the ARVN the scapegoat for America's defeat. Ultimately, as Brigham shows, without any real political commitment to a divided Vietnam or vision for the future, the ARVN retreated into a subnational culture that redefined the war's meaning: saving their families. His fascinating book gives us a fuller understanding not only of the Vietnam War but also of the problems associated with U.S. nation building through military intervention.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49618651087121,"sku":"GOR007206615","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50360479547665,"sku":"CIN0700614338G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52598857007377,"sku":"NLS9780700614332","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0700614338.jpg?v=1763481456"},{"product_id":"reckless-book-robert-k-brigham-9781610397025","title":"Reckless","description":"The American war in Vietnam was concluded in 1973 under the terms of a truce that were effectively identical to what was offered to the Nixon administration four years earlier. Those four years cost America billions of dollars and over 35,000 war deaths and casualties, and resulted in the deaths of over 300,000 Vietnamese. And those years were the direct result of the supposed master plan of the most important voice in the Nixon White House on American foreign policy: Henry Kissinger.  Using newly available archival material from the Nixon Presidential Library and Kissinger's personal papers, Robert K. Brigham shows how Kissinger's approach to Vietnam was driven by personal political rivalries and strategic confusion, while domestic politics played an outsized influence on Kissinger's so-called strategy. There was no great master plan or Bismarckian theory that supported how the US continued the war or conducted peace negotiations.   As a result, a distant tragedy was perpetuated, forever changing both countries. Now, perhaps for the first time, we can see the full scale of that tragedy and the machinations that fed it.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49883812102417,"sku":"CIN1610397029G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ WELL_READ \/ SBYB","offer_id":50332550594833,"sku":"CIN1610397029A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51039088148753,"sku":"NIN9781610397025","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":51376692035857,"sku":"GOR014245858","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":51694978072849,"sku":"CIN1610397029VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ LIKE_NEW \/ SBYB","offer_id":52946908709137,"sku":"CIN1610397029LN","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":53349785403665,"sku":"NLS9781610397025","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1610397029.jpg?v=1750895133"},{"product_id":"united-states-and-iraq-since-1990-book-robert-k-brigham-9781405198998","title":"The United States and Iraq Since 1990","description":"This book offers a concise history of US policy in Iraq since 1990 and how it has evolved over two decades.   Examines US relations with Iraq from both a regional and international perspective Argues that the only way to clearly understand US policy toward Iraq is to see it in its proper historical context and within a transnational framework Uses recently declassified documents at the end of each chapter to illustrate US decision-making in the wars for Iraq Addresses the importance of the changing domestic climate surrounding two decades","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49937436868881,"sku":"CIN1405198990G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1405198990.jpg?v=1751271485"},{"product_id":"is-iraq-another-vietnam-book-robert-k-brigham-9781586484132","title":"Is Iraq Another Vietnam?","description":"A respected Vietnam historian offers a clear-eyed, thought-provoking analysis of the similarities and differences between Vietnam and Iraq - and argues that the current use of Vietnam to create policy in Iraq is a bad reading of history that will lead to disaster. Since the first days of the Iraqi invasion, supporters of the war have urged the public not to view this conflict as another Vietnam. They rightfully point to several important distinctions. First, there is no unified resistance in Iraq. The internal conflict between Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites has kept any integrated insurgency from developing. Second, no political or religious leader has been able to galvanize opposition to US intervention the way that Ho Chi Minh did in Vietnam. Third, external support for the insurgency in Iraq is almost non-existent compared to the international support that Vietnam received. Fourth, causality figures from the Vietnam War dwarf those from Iraq. Finally, it is not likely that 580,000 American troops will find their way to Iraq. Still, sceptics cannot help but hear the echo of Vietnam. They fear Bush's soaring rhetoric about international terrorism. They fear that nation building efforts in Iraq will end in disappointment. They fear that US counterinsurgency programmes will not increase security. They fear that the recent Iraqi elections will not lead to a stable government. They fear that Iraqi security forces are no match for the insurgents. They fear the atrocities will increase, further dragging America into the moral abyss. They fear that the US is losing the battles for the hearts and minds of Islamic moderates. They fear that the US does not have enough troops to stay in Iraq or to get out. They fear that the light at the end of the tunnel is a fast-approaching train. They fear the quagmire. But are the sceptics right? Is Iraq another Vietnam? No, and yes. A straight comparison does an injustice to solid history. There are important similarities, however, and some lessons to be learned form Vietnam. In Iraq, like Vietnam, the original rationale for going to war has been discredited. In both cases the new justification became building stable societies. Is this a viable policy? There are enormous pitfalls in America's nation building efforts in Iraq as there were in Vietnam. But it is the business we now find ourselves in and there is no easy retreat from it morally. As American frustration increases, some policy makers are making the deadly mistake of approaching problems in Iraq as if we are facing them for the first time. It is crucial that we apply the lessons of Vietnam wisely and selectively. In \"Is Iraq Another Vietnam?\", Robert Brigham identifies the critical issues that American policy makers must confront - with wisdom and authority that cannot be ignored.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50703724314897,"sku":"CIN1586484133VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":51134578426129,"sku":"GOR009193574","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":52815373238545,"sku":"CIN1586484133G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":53584729309457,"sku":"GOR010100472","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1586484133.jpg?v=1751422765"},{"product_id":"this-is-a-true-war-story-book-robert-k-brigham-9780226846880","title":"This Is a True War Story","description":"A personal account by a war historian and adoptee who discovers his biological father was a famous Marine combat photographer in Vietnam.      Robert K. Brigham has had a substantial career as a historian of the Vietnam War, with a hand in nine books, a documentary, public history projects, and more. While many a historian has felt compelled at some point to write about a subject close to them personally, Brigham did not think he was doing that. But, at age fifty-eight, Brigham, who had long known he was adopted, discovered that he’d improbably and unknowingly been studying and talking about his biological father for decades. That man, Bruce Atwell, was a Marine Corps photographer who took some of that war’s most indelible and widely reproduced pictures. Brigham had used those images over and over again in decades’ worth of classes and public lectures, never knowing the truth.     Both Brigham and Atwell were products of the American foster care and adoption system, and both were defined professionally by Vietnam. In a story shot through with echoes and shadows, Brigham not only reveals his own history as an adoptee but opens a startlingly fresh vantage on the fragility of American families; the power of social norms and taboos to shape lives; and the forces that inequitably disrupt families, not least of them war. The result is an accessible and moving book that is at once both a powerful personal story and an illuminating social critique.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":52449452261649,"sku":"NGR9780226846880","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":53428721844497,"sku":"NIN9780226846880","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9780226846880.jpg?v=1763634323"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/en-au\/collections\/author-books-by-robert-k-brigham.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}