Customer Reviews

On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondents Journal from the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam (From Our Own Correspondent)

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4 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

As I had so much enjoyed both THE PEKING LETTER and FATAL CROSSROADS I much looked forward to reading Mr. Toppings ON THE FRONT LINES OF THE COLD WAR. I was not disappointed. T his book reads like a novel-vivid, literary and deft in it's analyses of the complex and convoluted politics and personalities ( from Zhou Enlai through Fidel Castro) of what is, arguably, the most seminal period of the 20th century. particularly interesting were the clandestine ramifications of OPERATION VESUVIUS in Cambodia during the Vietnam war (film-worthy and full of adventure ,secrecy and action!) This history is made more personal and even romantic by the inclusion of Mr. Topping's journeys with his photo/journalist wife, Audrey Ronning,( seen in one photograph on horseback with Kazaks in 1975 while on assignment with The New York Times and the National Geographic) It is a masterful and scholarly revelation!

Having watched the coverage of the Viet Nam War as a child, Mr. Topping's fine chronicle went a long way toward clarifying and deepening my understanding of the mulitple issues, personalities and strategies involved in this seminal international drama. Anyone interested in this period of history will be rewarded and inspired by this detailed, colorful and descriptive book.

The title of this book implies that it is a [comprehensive] history of the Cold War. It is not. While it includes brief chapters on events in Cuba and elsewhere, it is really about events in S E Asia, primarily in China from the time of the Chinese Civil War to 2009.

I was disappointed that the book did not live up to its title. That is why I didn't give it 5 stars. But otherwise, it is well written by an 'insider' and certainly worth reading.

Seymour Topping was a great foreign correspondent and a great editor in his time, and he remains a great writer. His memoir evokes eras worth reconstructing. His bravery in covering wars and other conflicts is truly remarkable, as is his acuity. I would urge every journalist, and every aspiring journalist, to read this book.

On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's Journal from the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam (From Our Own Correspondent)

An amazing work. Topping served in many of the "hot spots" of the second half of the 20th century. He stories are mind-blowing. In a fictional story - but with much greater intelligence - he would be 'Forrest Gump.'

This is what I believe to be one of the great works recounting elements of the Cold War by someone who was there.

It deserves the Pulitzer Prize.

You name the headline, from 1946 to 1971, and Seymour Topping was probably there. As a reporter and editor for two big wire services and then The New York Times, he trekked through China and Vietnam during their revolutions, and interviewed Castro, Bobby and John Kennedy, Zhou en-lai, and many more. He explained Vietnam to Congressman John Kennedy in 1951 and was one of the top editors at The Times who decided to publish the Pentagon Papers two decades later. He was in Moscow during the Cuban missile crisis and in Beijing during a major Maoist purge. His first child was even born in Vietnam, as he reported the fall of a key French-held city.

Thus, "On the Front Lines of the Cold War" is truly what its title proclaims: a personal as well as factual tour through living history. Mostly, Topping does what he's been trained to do - report the facts, in a wonderfully readable style. But there are also occasional bits of analysis and personal tidbits. For instance, it's clear that he is furious that one powerful right-winder accused him personally of "covering up Stalin's control of the Chinese communist purge." (During the height of the "who lost China?" debate, this sort of accusation could be dangerous.) My favorite anecdote describes how his wife, photojournalist Audrey Ronning Topping, was "munching bananas" and "tugged at my black beard" when they finally caught up with each other after a particularly harrowing excursion in Vietnam.