Newberry Medalist Russell Freedman presents a descriptive and engaging look at the Vietnam War, and the controversies and contention that still surround it, while also examining current day Vietnam. Timeline, Source Notes, Glossary, Index.

RGG: A concise, understandable history of the events leading up to the war, the war itself, and the state of present day relations. It does not take much imagination to relate these historical events to the more recent Iraq war and the current state of the world. Reading Intereste: 12-YA.

"Vietnam: A History of the War" is an account of the Vietnam war and the history that took place leading up to the war. The first half of the book describes how tension between the United States and Vietnam actually began after World War II, when the United States didn't live up to promises that it gave to the North Vietnamese. The author describes the 30 years of fighting that the Vietnamese had to endure, before there was finally peace after the Vietnam war concluded. This book doesn't highlight many specific battles of the war, but rather gives a history of why the Vietnam war started and what happens to the Vietnamese people after the war.

I would use this in a sixth or seventh grade classroom in an interactive read aloud just so the students can get as much information out of it as possible.

RGG: A concise, understandable history of the events leading up to the war, the war itself, and the state of present day relations. It does not take much imagination to relate these historical events to the more recent Iraq war and the current state of the world. Reading Intereste: 12-YA.