Review by New York Times Review
MY LAI: Vietnam, 1968, and the Descent Into Darkness, by Howard Jones. (Oxford, $34.95.) This book about the famous massacre of Vietnamese villagers by American soldiers may be difficult to read - but it is essential for understanding our recent history, and should become the standard reference on the subject. DRAFT NO. 4: On the Writing Process, by John McPhee. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $25.) Eight essays, originally published in The New Yorker, offer writing advice from the master prose stylist who is perhaps the most revered narrative journalist of our time, letting readers behind the scenes of his creative process. BIRDCAGE WALK, by Helen Dunmore. (Atlantic Monthly, $26.) In her radiantly charged final novel, Dunmore (who died of cancer in June) imagines the turbulent life of an 18th-century British woman, a political activist at the time of the French Revolution, and the effect her radicalism has on her daughter's troubled marriage to an imposing real estate developer. KISS ME SOMEONE, by Karen Shepard. (Tin House, $19.95.) A sharp-edged short story collection that vividly demonstrates how a woman can be another woman's worst enemy. "They'd always walked the line between teasing and cruelty," Shepard writes of four bridesmaids, nominally friends, in one story. A MOONLESS, STARLESS SKY: Ordinary Women and Men Fighting Extremism in Africa, by Alexis Okeowo. (Hachette, $26.) A Nigerian-American journalist profiles ordinary Africans living in defiance of the continent's extremist movements, dramatically at times but more often through simple daily endurance. AFTER THE FALL, by Dan Santat. (Roaring Brook, $17.99; ages 4 to 8.) What if Humpty Dumpty (here decked out in jeans and a skinny tie) decided to pull himself together and get back up on that wall? Santat's picture book explores that premise in a delightful tribute to resiliency and facing fears, with a stellar surprise ending. THE STARS BENEATH OUR FEET, by David Barclay Moore. (Knopf, $16.99; ages 8 to 12.) In this debut novel celebrating community and the power of imagination, a 12-year-old boy in the Harlem projects, still grieving his brother's recent death, finds answers to his life's questions by competing to build cities with Lego. TUMBLE & BLUE, by Cassie Beasley. (Dial, $17.99; ages 8 to 12.) A generations-old family curse and a mystical swamp-dwelling alligator are at the center of Beasley's second fantasy novel, featuring a warmhearted exploration of fate. GOOD NIGHT, PLANET, by Liniers. (TOON Books, $12.95; ages 4 to 8.) The latest picture book from the Argentine cartoonist Liniers is a lively tale of a stuffed rabbit who, once his little girl falls asleep, promptly heads out for an adventure of his own. The full reviews of these and other recent books are on the web: nytimes.com/books
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [November 26, 2017]
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Nearly 10 years in the making, this exhaustively researched and well-written narrative bores in on the details of what has become known as the My Lai Massacre-the slaughter of 504 old men, women, and children by American troops in the South Vietnamese village of Son My on Mar. 16, 1968-and the massacre's legal and political aftermath. Jones (Blue and Gray Diplomacy), professor emeritus of history at the University of Alabama, mined an array of sources, including some original oral histories and interviews with Americans and Vietnamese, in producing this authoritative account of a dark moment in American history. To Jones's credit, he succeeds in his goal of presenting a "balanced and accurate account" of the still-controversial incident. He also tackles the thorny questions of why the massacre took place, and whether it was an aberration. Jones boils down the answer to the former question to character flaws and the lack of "a notion of decency" among the troops who did the killing and raping. As for whether My Lai was a Vietnam War aberration, Jones cites other massacres in Vietnam and previous U.S. wars, but notes that My Lai "stands out, in part because of the numbers" of people killed. Maps & Illus. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
In March 1968, U.S. soldiers killed hundreds of unarmed civilians in an attack on Son My village in South Vietnam; victims included pregnant women, infants, and the elderly. Jones (history, emeritus, Univ. of Alabama; Death of a Generation) offers a thoroughly researched and detailed account of the massacre, and the subsequent cover-up, investigations, and trials. Readers will learn about the complexities of the tragedy and how it became public knowledge more than a year later despite efforts to conceal it. Although investigations found evidence that dozens of soldiers participated in the massacre, only Lt. William Calley was convicted of war crimes. The author explains how this led the public to sympathize with Calley, believing he was a scapegoat for mistakes made by military and government leaders. Ultimately, Calley only served three and a half years of house arrest. VERDICT Vivid descriptions of sexual assault and murder make this an emotionally challenging read at times. However, this important work deserves a wide audience and is essential for anyone interested in the Vietnam War.-Joshua Wallace, Tarleton State Univ. Lib. Stephenville, TX © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A scrupulous history of one of the darkest moments in American military history.On March 16, 1968, troops from the United States Army entered a series of villages in South Vietnam, and what ensued has been called the "My Lai Massacre," one of the most shameful events in the history of U.S. foreign affairs. Although the numbers remain in dispute, perhaps the most reliable indicate 504 dead, more than half of whom were under 20 years of age. The slaughter served no larger strategic or tactical purpose. It was murder in cold blood, and an out-of-his-depth 24-year-old soldier, William Calley, who was guilty of an array of crimes against humanity that day, would serve as the focal point of the criminal investigations that followed. Calley would be found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison. This book is part of the publisher's Pivotal Moments in American History series, and the events of My Laiindeed, all of 1968certainly fit. "My Lai was a turning point for so many reasons," writes Jones (Blue and Gray Diplomacy: A History of Union and Confederate Foreign Relations, 2010, etc.), "not least for the ways in which it tarnished the image many Americans had of their soldiers, and that the soldiers had of themselves." The story of that day did not emerge, however, until 1969, primarily due to the investigative journalism of Seymour Hersh, who won the Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on My Lai. Jones is a versatile historianhis work has ranged from the nation's founding era to the modern U.S.and here, he successfully accomplishes two tasks: first, he provides as comprehensive a history of My Lai as we are likely to see for some time. Second, he thoughtfully probes the myriad ways that the My Lai story has been told. Jones succeeds on all counts in a book that, due to its subject matter, is not pleasant to read but is powerful and important. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
