Everything We Had: An Oral History of the Vietnam War [Mass Market Paperback]

Al Santoli (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 12, 1985

Here is an oral history of the Vietnam War by thirty-three American soldiers who fought it. A 1983 American Book Award nominee.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Here is an oral history of the Vietnam War by thirty-three American soldiers who fought it. A 1983 American Book Award nominee.

About the Author

Al Santoli served in Vietnam in 1968 and 1969 as Sergeant with the US 26th Infantry Division where he earned a Bronze Star for Valor and Three PurpleHearts. As a noted specialist on security issues in the Asia-Pacific region, his areas of expertise include Chinese foreign and security policy, transnational crime and terrorism in Asia, and US - Taiwan policy. He is also the author of To Bear and Burden, New Americans and Leading the Way.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (March 12, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345322797
• ISBN-13: 978-0345322791
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.7 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #289,509 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > Asia > Southeast Asia
  • #15 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > World > 20th Century
  • #38 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > Military > Vietnam War

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A powerful book, in spite of errors, July 31, 2002

By 

Lee Russell (New York City, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Everything We Had: An Oral History of the Vietnam War (Mass Market Paperback)

There are actually two false war stories in this book, those of Thomas Bird ("Ia Drang") and Mike Beamon ("The Green-Faced Frogmen"). Mr. Bird apologized to the author after the book's publication. He did serve in Vietnam, not in combat, and the POW story is a complete fabrication. Mr. Beamon did not even serve in the US military, never mind the SEALS or Vietnam. At the time the book came out, 1981, it was difficult to get veterans to discuss the war at all, never mind insist they verify their stories. Mr. Santoli, who I knew personally, was as disappointed as any of his critics that he had been taken in by these accounts. Still "Everything We Had"is a monumental work, from the days before the Vietnam Wall. Then the popular culture wanted nothing more to dismiss the war completely and held the men who fought there in contempt as losers or criminals. The feelings of Santoli's real contributors are still a compelling read today, twenty years later.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Unique Summation of Vietnam, April 14, 2004

By 

Chad R. Reihm (Miami Beach, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Everything We Had: An Oral History of the Vietnam War (Mass Market Paperback)

This book takes a very unique approach to narrating the history of the Vietnam war. It allows individuals to tell their stories of their experience, but does so in chronilogical order. So what you get first is a story about welcoming Americans to the war i.e. getting off the plane to see a corpse fall out of the bag...welcome to nam and what you get last is a get out of Saigon before it falls story. The stories are varied, covering special ops and grunt units to hospital and airforce views. Some stories are very short while some linger on, but all of them have heart and truly show a side not usually seen with the battle histories.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and believe anyone with any interest in America's involvement in Vietnam would also. It is very cheap and is a quick read and will improve your knowledge of history...all three great qualities!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Just Combat, April 6, 2002

By 

John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Everything We Had: An Oral History of the Vietnam War (Mass Market Paperback)

I picked this book up for the wrong reason, I thought I was going to be reading account after account of fire-fights. What I got was more human experiences that in the end I probably enjoyed more then just review of battles. Don't get me wrong, there is combat, but there is so much more to the real experiences in the every day life. You really get a feel for what the foot soldier went through. The book does read ok, you notice the different writing styles of the different authors, but the content is really the focus of the book.