Late thoughts on an old war : the legacy of Vietnam /

Also author of numerous significant critical works on the Vietnam War (American Literature and the Experience of Vietnam, CH, Feb'83; Re-Writing America, CH, Nov'91), Beidler (Univ. of Alabama) here provides a powerful and angry personal statement that expresses profound thoughts and misgivings not only about the aftermath of the US's encounter with Vietnam but also about its current military and ideological direction in a post-9/11 world. In so doing he reveals much about himself (family, hopes, failures) and his perspectives, through the eyes of an English professor and cultural critic, and of soldier in Vietnam. With chapters on films and music, popular literature, the language of soldiers in Vietnam, Robert McNamara, and William Calley, Beidler opens new critical vistas in well-trodden areas. In chapters on the military's practice of solatium and on the poetry and principles of John Balaban, Beidler goes beyond critical commentary to speak with sensitivity and gravitas on how the strongest nation on the planet conducts its affairs. Beidler aims at a perfect marriage between critical commentary and moral indignation and, at times, his voice takes on the cast of a Swift or Samuel Johnson. This sobering and illuminating work has application far beyond Vietnam War literature. ^BSumming Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers. B. Adler Valdosta State University

Beidler (English, Univ. of Alabama, Tuscaloosa; Re-Writing America: Vietnam Authors in Their Generation) led an armored cavalry platoon in Vietnam, where he certainly saw his share of action. In these thoughtful essays, he keeps trying to understand that war, even though most of the country no longer seems to care. This is a collection of essays that discuss the specialized language of the war, movies on the conflict, wartime music, racial disputes, the new explosion in war literature, and the ongoing question of then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's guilt. Intermixed are descriptions of wartime life and the war's total, deadly ridiculousness. What people need to pay more attention to, Beidler contends, are the ideas of national destiny and exceptionalism that can lead us into disaster. There are no illustrations, reference notes, bibliography, or index. This interesting and well-argued book is strongly recommended for both public and academic libraries.-Daniel K. Blewett, Coll. of DuPage Lib., Glen Ellyn, IL (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.