I have read maybe 100 books on the Vietnam war. A veteran of the war (69-70) albeit in the air force, I had no dragons to slay. It just happened to be where I grew up and I wanted to know and understand it. Previously, I had thought Prochnaus's "Once Upon A Distant War" was the penultimate VN book. This takes that, and every book I've ever read by journalists (Halberstram, Sheehan et al ) and turns them upside down. His research is extensive, though old visions die hard for I am still not convinced. A warning, if those guys are your heroes, or John Paul Vann was someone you admired militarily, you will not like Mark Moyar. He will, however, rock your world and you must read him, if for no other reason than to see an opposing view.