A Story of Vietnam

A Story of Vietnam narrates the history of Vietnam, from its beginnings to the present, giving equal importance to the culture and the arts as to the political or military events.While not a conventional textbook, A Story of Vietnam can, nonetheless, provide a substantial reading material to students interested in Asia. To the hyphenated Vietnamese, it can serve as a convenient reference tool to unveil the historical allusions, cultural insinuations, mythical hints, literary suggestions, ethnic idiosyncrasies they encounter every day at home. This book may also be sought after by the people who know so much already about a Vietnam as a War but who still would like to know more about a Vietnam as a culture.Four early comments: I think that to a large extent you have succeeded in your goal to write a general history that is both fun and instructive to read, and I particularly like the anecdotes and stories that you include. ...your lovely writing system and unique perspective are very compelling. I particularly like the fact that you have devoted significant thought to the literature and also arts of Vietnam. ...The chapters were a great read and the subject area will indeed be a popular one. These are real comments coming from real editors of well known publishers. They wrote them in the same letters that informed me they had turned down my manuscript. The readers will have to judge whether these comments constitute token consolation or sincere evaluation.