The Battle of An Loc by James Wilbanks

Major Battle of the Vietnam War

ere is a review I wrote for the book "The Battle of An Loc" by James Wilbanks for the Military History Book Club. A must have book for anyone with an interest in Viet-Nam. This is a very good read. The Battle of An Loc was a major battle of the Vietnam War that lasted from April 13 to July 20, 1972. It culminated in a decisive victory for South Vietnam’s Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). The struggle for An Loc was one of the most important battles of the war. It saw the introduction of conventional warfare and tanks by the North Vietnamese Army (NVA). The ARVN forces halted the NVA advance towards Saigon. It delayed the war's end by three years.

First-Hand Account

The author, James Wilbanks, was present and wounded at An Loc. This is not only his account, but gives insights from the North Vietnamese and US advisor's after action reports plus other communist documents. The role of the unending US air support, the bravery of the US aircrews, and the orchestration by the Forward Air Controllers to the battle’s victory for the ARVN and US advisors are covered in warranted great detail.

The inability of the NVA to have armor and infantry work together in more conventional warfare is clearly brought to light and documented. Wilbanks gives insights into Richard Nixon’s Vietnamization’s perceived success by the politicians and its ultimate failures. This is a must have read and must have addition to the library for anyone with interest in the war in Viet-Nam.

How the North Won: A Military History of the Civil War by Herman Hattaway and Archer Jones

A Scholarly Look at the US Civil War

How the North Won: A Military History of the Civil War by Herman Hattaway and Archer Jones is a scholarly look at the Civil War. Hattaway and Jones have produced a great book on Civil War logistics, planning, and administration.

Logistics and Strategy

The authors seem to focus more on the logistics and strategy side over the tactical side. The book was very good, but at times, it was a dry recitation of chronology, dull facts, and statistics.

I had to force my way to complete the book, and it took two attempts to finish the book. Most copies of the book will collect dust on some university library bookshelf. It is too deep and too dry for most readers. Better to borrow this book from your library than spend your money purchasing the book.

Citizen Soldiers by Stephen E. Ambrose

How Citizens Become a Soldier

The book describes how these "citizen soldiers" came to be soldiers, and what they did once they were. There is some overlap with his other titles about World War II. The book follows the battles right after the allies left the beaches of Normandy, all the way through France into German territory.

Details World War Two in Europe

This lengthy volume details the war in Europe. It tells how Americans were critical to that victory. It gives the story through the eyes of those who participated in the various units. I enjoy this title and the stories the former GI's share.

“Citizen Soldiers“ is the name for the draftees, national guard, and army reserve soldiers, the non-regular army soldiers, which were so necessary to field an army of the size that was needed in World War II. Ambrose clearly shows that both the regular army and the citizen-soldiers were required for victory.

Battle for Saigon: Tet 1968 by Keith Nolan

Battle for Saigon: Tet 1968 

Battle for Saigon: Tet 1968 by Keith Nolan gives an excellent tactical description of the fighting in and around Saigon during the Tet Offensive in 1968. While many, many other books give a larger strategic sense to the whole Offensive, this book is very specific and useful to understand what happened in South Vietnam's capital.

Accounts of Small-unit Leaders

This book has another strength, too, in that its accounts of small-unit leaders in combat provide great lessons for future junior military leaders--especially for company command level and below. The one big drawback is that it has no tactical maps, just one big map of Saigon at the beginning of the book. Detailed maps would have been a great help while trying to decipher the textual descriptions of the fight. The author should take note of this for future revisions of this book.

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