PRAISE FOR PRECIOUS FREEDOM "James Bradley journeyed to Iwo Jima and returned with Flags of Our Fathers and now ventures to Vietnam and brings us Precious Freedom , where he reveals that, if we''d known what happened in the 1960s in Vietnam, American mothers would never have sent their children to Iraq and Afghanistan. The truth is the best vaccination against great lies." --Oliver Stone "This is James Bradley doing what he does best. Diving in and talking to veterans, asking the hardest questions about the Vietnam War, and looking for actual answers. Precious Freedom is a David and Goliath story . and proof of the power of the ordinary person." --Brad Meltzer #1 New York Times bestselling author "In James Bradley''s powerful book, his protagonist, Chip, joins the Marines in 1967, gets sent to Vietnam, and tragically learns that the war had been a lie. The enemies were simply ordinary people fighting for their own country, not to take over ours.
Like Chip, I joined the military in the 1960s but witnessed the war vicariously through reams of top secret messages at an intelligence headquarters far from the war zone. Nevertheless, I came to the same conclusion and joined the anti-war movement when I returned. Half a century after the tragic and bloody conflict ended, it''s time for a new generation to understand, both through Chip as well as those sadly on the other side of his bullets, what the war was really all about. As well as those that have followed." --James Bamford, bestselling author of The Puzzle Palace and Body of Secrets "James Bradley is in top form with Precious Freedom , displaying his gift for making complex subjects understandable. Precious Freedom is the place to start if you haven''t read about the Vietnam War and if you''re familiar with the genre, it will add significantly to your understanding."-- Douglas Valentine , author, The CIA as Organized Crime "For more than sixty years, Americans have looked at Vietnam through the wrong end of a telescope. Precious Freedom turns it around, bringing into sharp focus Vietnamese people who lived and died in the Pentagon''s gunsights.
James Bradley''s profound novel illuminates the resilient spirit of Vietnam''s people and the historic aggression of America''s warfare state."-- Norman Solomon, author of War Made Invisible "James Bradley''s revelatory account of how the Vietnamese people defeated a better armed, better funded fighting force backed up by the richest country in the world offers an object lesson in why so-called advanced technology and vast expenditures are no match for superior morale, smart strategy, deep local knowledge, society-wide commitment and unity of purpose. The stories Bradley conveys offer a cautionary tale about the dangers of an approach based on technological hubris and misplaced faith in the power and effectiveness of military intervention, divorced from an understanding of local conditions. War is a human endeavor, and Bradley captures that truth in compelling detail." --William D. Hartung , Senior Research Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, author of The Trillion Dollar War Machine "The world knows that Vietnam defeated the United States in a long war, but how did Vietnam accomplish that astonishing feat? James Bradley has come up with a magnificently rich and deeply researched answer. His book teaches us much about the war and about Vietnam, but most of all about the United States and why it embarks on such devastating misadventures."-- Stephen Kinzer, author of Poisoner in Chief and The Brothers "Precious Freedom is an extremely important book that counters the distorted revisionism about the Vietnam War prevalent in the US, presenting the US cause as a noble one, and America''s South Vietnamese allies as heroic.
Bradley is a gifted story-teller and writer who gives voice to the Vietnamese people who successfully stood up to defend their country against brutal foreign invaders, backed by local collaborators. Drawing on dozens of interviews, including with aides to Ho Chi Minh, North Vietnamese army generals, and southern-based National Liberation Front (NLF) fighters, along with American Marines, Bradley explains how and why Vietnam won the Vietnam War, and how and why the US lost. Important lessons can be drawn from this history that sheds light on the barbarism and folly underlying US foreign policy in the Cold War."-- Jeremy Kuzmarov, Managing Editor of CovertAction Magazine and author of Obama''s Unending Wars "If we had truly understood what happened in Vietnam, no American would have let their children march off to Iraq or Afghanistan. Precious Freedom exposes the buried lessons of war, showing how forgotten history paves the road to repeated tragedy."-- John Kiriakou, Author of The Reluctant Spy "James Bradley has produced another triumph. Anyone who has spent time talking with veterans and survivors of the American War in Vietnam will instantly recognize the people in this book. Precious Freedom offers a window onto the obscenity of the conflict and the episodes of courage and grace that nonetheless punctuated it.
It''s a complex story told in a compelling and furiously honest fashion. If you think you''ve already read all the great Vietnam War novels, think again."-- Nick Turse , author of Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam "If you have spent time with US veterans of the Vietnam War and with Vietnamese citizens who lived through it, and took part in it, you will immediately recognize in these pages the enormous nuance and complexity of that time in both countries'' histories. It''s likely in your daily routine that you meet someone who fought in Vietnam, and it''s almost guaranteed that they are still thinking of those days, the terror and camaraderie. At the same time, we struggle to find a way to talk about it. That''s where James Bradley comes in. Precious Freedom is an engrossing, highly-researched and essential part of this complex conversation. We undertake a new journey with James Bradley: he takes us inside the lives of the people, culture, and aspirations of the Vietnamese people who met on the battlefields with the older men you see today in the grocery stores, the coffee shops, at high school graduations.
If we are to understand the experiences of these two countries, and to honor them, we must see they are inextricably bound. Bradley brings this relationship to dramatic light in a way we cannot forget or put down. Read this book for yourself, for the veterans of any conflict, and for the Vietnamese people who have become some of America''s steadfast allies, just as they had predicted they might be. Precious Freedom is an important and poignant homecoming of many, many kinds." --Doug Stanton, # 1 New York Times bestselling author PRAISE FOR JAMES BRADLEY (for Flags of Our Fathers ) "Unforgettable . one of the most instructive and moving books on war and its aftermath that we are likely see." - The New York Times "The best battle book I ever read . These stories, chronicling the time the six men who raised the flag at Iwo Jima enlisted, their training, and the landing and subsequent struggle, fill me with awe.
" - Stephen Ambrose "A powerful book whose vivid and horrific images do not easily leave the mind . [ Flags of Our Fathers ] relates the brutalizing story of Iwo Jima with a fine eye for both the strategic imperative and the telling incident." - The Boston Globe "Brings a heartfelt personal dimension to this penetrating and insightful look at an American icon . Flags of Our Fathers captivates as the story behind a famous photo; a story that lives on in a son''s heart." - National Review "Graphically, horrifically, and heroically told . Not only a gripping true story but also an inspirational book, a tale about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances." - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "Bradley''s gripping narrative, vivid descriptions, and heartfelt style make this a powerful story of courage, humility, and tragedy . The book packs both a literary and historical punch .
Highly recommended." - Library Journal (for Flyboys ) "In Flyboys , James Bradley combines his tenacious detective skills with his gifts as a master storyteller to produce a tragic epic of two empires. I wept not only for the American pilots, but for all the millions of people who died needlessly in the Pacific War." - Iris Chang "Bradley has written a clear-eyed, heartfelt approach to a little-known corner of the 20th century''s largest and most violent upheaval, while at the same time shining a light on some of that generation''s finest." - Denver Post " Flyboys is not just a true story of courage but a frightening reminder of the savagery human beings are capable of and of the terrible moral choices nations at war must make." - Houston Chronicle "Bradley tac.