Customer Reviews
Flawless - By: G. S. O'neill, 22 Mar 2008 
Without meaning to sound like some 20P tabloid review.
This book is a must read. It's perfect.
Quite simply, Astounding - By: Jack Swain, 06 Jan 2008 If you're a fan of films like Apocalypse Now & Full Metal Jacket, you'll appreciate the origins of the cynical, drugged out view of Nam. The style of writing is direct & conversational, while still managing to portray the madness of the war. What makes this account most compelling is not the political backdrop or the quiet criticism of the army's conduct during the war, but the rich tapestry of wacky characters Herr came into contact with; Kilgore & Kurtz palein comparison.
Essential reading.
Pure stream-of-consciousness genius - By: William Bustin, 01 Jun 2007 If you're looking for a straight ahead factual narrative of the Vietnam war, then look elsewhere (please do, that sort of book needs to be read). If you're looking for a book that captures the disjointed, hilarious, terrifying & disgusting only partly comprehended reality of the war from the point of view of a closely involved non-combatant, then please read this masterpiece. Some of the best English-language prose of the last forty years isin this book. I'd put my mortgage on it.
On balance, a valuable glance at the war in Vietnam. - By: Houston, 03 Feb 2007 
A very vivid account of what life on the ground was likein Vietnam. I have some knowledge of the war, which was at times necessary to understand a number of referencesin the text. Hence, I'd suggest reading a more conservative history of the conflict before taking on 'Dispatches'.
The sections at the beginning & end of the book are rather garbled & I did not enjoy reading what,in my opinion, represent little more than rather pretentious ramblings. However, these do not form a large proportion of the text, & the rest is very good & incredibly atmospheric. The battles at Khe Sahn & Hue are featured & I have never read anything that conveys the spectrum of experiences & views of the men involved, both soldiers & reporters, as well as this book.
A considerable achievementin fewer than 300 pages.
Frenetic, flickery-eyed genius - By: Gareth M. Duggan, 05 Oct 2006 This is the sort of writing that tosses into a mixing bowl the fluid, stream-of-consciousness style of Kerouac & the clear-eyed cynicism of Conrad. The end result is often confusing, garbled, shocking, violent, disconnected, but is an eye-opening account of what it feels like to be fighting an unwinnable war. This is not the strategy, logistics, politics & posturing that often surrounds our modern view of the Viet Nam War. It is what it was really like for the American fighting man on the ground, regardless of how you feel about the morals of the war or those menin the first place. And it also provides some uncomfortable parallels between what happenedin Viet Nam then & what is happeningin Iraq & Afghanistan now.
