| Description |
1 online resource |
| Summary |
In this epic biography of Edward Lansdale (1908– 1987), the man said to be the fictional model for Graham Greene’s The Quiet American, best-selling historian Max Boot demonstrates how Lansdale pioneered a “hearts and mind” diplomacy, first in the Philippines, then in Vietnam. It was a visionary policy that, as Boot reveals, was ultimately crushed by America’s giant military bureaucracy, steered by elitist generals and blueblood diplomats who favored troop build-ups and napalm bombs over winning the trust of the people. Through dozens of interviews and access to neverbefore-seen documents―including long-hidden love letters―Boot recasts this cautionary American story, tracing the bold rise and the crashing fall of the roguish “T. E. Lawrence of Asia” from the battle of Dien Bien Phu to the humiliating American evacuation in 1975. Bringing a tragic complexity to this so-called “ugly American,” this “engrossing biography” (Karl Marlantes) rescues Lansdale from historical ignominy and suggests that Vietnam could have been different had we only listened. With reverberations that continue to play out in Iraq and Afghanistan, The Road Not Taken is a biography of profound historical consequence. |
| Reproduction |
Electronic reproduction. New York : Liveright, 2018. Requires OverDrive Read (file size: N/A KB) or Adobe Digital Editions (file size: 42209 KB) or Kobo app or compatible Kobo device (file size: N/A KB) or Amazon Kindle (file size: N/A KB). |
| Subject |
Lansdale, Edward Geary, 1908-1987.
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Intelligence officers -- United States -- Biography.
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United States. Central Intelligence Agency -- Officials and employees -- Biography.
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Generals -- United States -- Biography.
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United States. Army -- Biography.
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Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- United States.
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| Genre |
Electronic books.
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| Other Form: |
Original 9780871409416 |
| ISBN |
9780871409430 (electronic bk) |
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