Late Thoughts on an Old War: The Legacy of Vietnam

Like no other book on Vietnam, this true river of facts and heart runs to the ocean of untouched beauty. Beidler is a master narrator and a hero. I’ve met a giant pal, and am proud to be in his company. My God, how good.

— Barry Hannah ― author of Yonder Stands Your Orphan

Now, when the Vietnam War is being transformed into a matrix of fantasy and myth used to promote perpetual warfare, Philip Beidler’s lucid memories and meditations become ever more timely and relevant. This book offers both a penetrating analysis of post-Vietnam American culture and a powerful antidote to the most toxic elements of that culture.

— H. Bruce Franklin ― author of Vietnam and Other American Fantasies

Beidler writes these compelling essays with a sense of urgency, because he knows that the war is receding into American history as the baby boomers who fought it are aging. His powerful language and raw, to-the-point style reveal the anger and despair of soldiers who served and felt betrayed by their government and fellow citizens. . . . In this book, he presents a collection of important and forceful works.

— ForeWord Magazine

Beidler 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. . . . What people need to pay more attention to, Beidler contends, are the ideas of national destiny and exceptionalism that can lead us into disaster. . . . This interesting and well-argued book is strongly recommended for both public and academic libraries.

— Library Journal

[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. . . . 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.

— Choice

[An] outstanding, personal―but much larger than that―account of a platoon leader who today often can smell the sweetly rancid smell of the dead. . . . Late Thoughts is an outstandingly lucid description of the war as it was, not as public affairs specialists and politicians described it. Mr. Beidler writes as vividly as Paul Fussell in his books on World War II. . . . It’s all here―the films, the music, the senseless killings of innocents―and it is painful. Everybody making decisions for war must read Late Thoughts on an Old War.

— Alan L. Gropman ― Washington Times

Beautifully written, at times eloquent, Beidler has written [a] gem of a book.

— History News Network

[T]houghtful, insightful, first-person essays . . . Beidler combines an adroit mixture of his own war and postwar experiences and cogent analyses of Vietnam War films, books, music, and history.

— VVA Veteran

Like no other book on Vietnam, this true river of facts and heart runs to the ocean of untouched beauty. Beidler is a master narrator and a hero. I’ve met a giant pal, and am proud to be in his company. My God, how good.

Now, when the Vietnam War is being transformed into a matrix of fantasy and myth used to promote perpetual warfare, Philip Beidler’s lucid memories and meditations become ever more timely and relevant. This book offers both a penetrating analysis of post-Vietnam American culture and a powerful antidote to the most toxic elements of that culture.

Beidler writes these compelling essays with a sense of urgency, because he knows that the war is receding into American history as the baby boomers who fought it are aging. His powerful language and raw, to-the-point style reveal the anger and despair of soldiers who served and felt betrayed by their government and fellow citizens. . . . In this book, he presents a collection of important and forceful works.

Beidler 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. . . . What people need to pay more attention to, Beidler contends, are the ideas of national destiny and exceptionalism that can lead us into disaster. . . . This interesting and well-argued book is strongly recommended for both public and academic libraries.

[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. . . . 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.

[An] outstanding, personal-but much larger than that-account of a platoon leader who today often can smell the sweetly rancid smell of the dead. . . . Late Thoughts is an outstandingly lucid description of the war as it was, not as public affairs specialists and politicians described it. Mr. Beidler writes as vividly as Paul Fussell in his books on World War II. . . . It’s all here-the films, the music, the senseless killings of innocents-and it is painful. Everybody making decisions for war must read Late Thoughts on an Old War.

Beautifully written, at times eloquent, Beidler has written [a] gem of a book.

[T]houghtful, insightful, first-person essays . . . Beidler combines an adroit mixture of his own war and postwar experiences and cogent analyses of Vietnam War films, books, music, and history.