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First published in 1991 as THE TURN, this is the gripping narrative of the passage of the United States and the Soviet Union from the Cold War to a new era. Now this widely praised book is available in a new, updated paperback edition that brings the narrative up to the dramatic collapse of the Soviet Union. Replete with historical personalities, as riveting as a spy thriller, this is an enthralling record of history in the making. 34 photos.
Finalist for the 1971 National Book Award In early 1968, Communist forces in Vietnam launched a surprise offensive that targeted nearly every city, town, and major military base throughout South Vietnam. For several hours, the U.S. embassy in Saigon itself came under siege by Viet Cong soldiers. Militarily, the offensive was a failure, as the North Vietnamese Army and its guerrilla allies in the south suffered devastating losses. Politically, however, it proved to be a crucial turning point in America's involvement in Southeast Asia and public opinion of the war. In this classic work of military history and war reportage—long considered the definitive history of Tet and its aftermath—Don Oberdorfer moves back and forth between the war and the home front to document the lasting importance of this military action. Based on his own observations as a correspondent for the Washington Post and interviews with hundreds of people who were caught up in the struggle, Tet! remains an essential contribution to our understanding of the Vietnam War.
An acclaimed history of the Korean Peninsula from World War II to the present day North Korea is an impoverished, famine-ridden nation, but it is also a nuclear power whose dictator Kim Jong-un regularly threatens his neighbors and adversaries, the United States in particular, with destruction. Even though Kim and President Donald Trump's responses to him dominate the daily headlines, the idea that North Korea is a menace is not a new one. Indeed, ever since Korea was first divided at the end of World War II, the tension between its northern and southern halves has riveted-and threatened to embroil -- the rest of the world. In this landmark history, veteran journalist Don Oberdorfer and Korea expert Robert Carlin grippingly describe how a historically homogenous people became locked in a perpetual struggle for supremacy -- and how other nations including the United States have tried, and failed, to broker a lasting peace.
A spellbinding biography of one of the most powerful and dignified men ever to come to DC—Senator Mike Mansfield. Mike Mansfield's career as the longest serving majority leader is finally given its due in this extraordinary biography. In many respects, Mansfield's dignity and decorum represent the high-water mark of the US Senate: he was respected as a leader who helped build consensus on tough issues and was renowned for his ability to work across the aisle and build strong coalitions. Amazingly, he would have breakfast every morning with a member of the opposing party. Mansfield was instrumental in pushing through some of the most influential legislation of the twentieth century. He was at the helm when the Senate passed landmark legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the creation of Medicare, and the nuclear test ban treaty. Mansfield played a crucial role in shaping America's foreign policy, corresponding with JFK about his opposition to the growing presence of the US in Southeast Asia. As ambassador to Japan, his conversations with Cambodia and China paved the way for Nixon's historic trip to China in 1972.
On 1st September 1983, a Soviet military pilot tracked and shot down an unarmed Korean airliner, with the loss of all aboard, including a number of Americans. The outcry was fierce; the USA and the USSR seemed locked in a deepening spiral of hostility. Yet less than five years later, the world watched Ronald Reagan stroll through Red Square with Mikhail Gorbachev after signing a major arms reduction treaty. From hatred to something approaching friendship - this book offers an account of one of history's great turning points. Apart from covering, as a journalist, many of the meetings and events dealt with in the book, the author interviewed many of the key figures on both sides.
Through Don Oberdorfer's words and J. T. Miller's illustrations, this book tells the fascinating, colorful, and sometimes surprising story of Princeton University's first 250 years. The first half focuses on major turning points and personalities as Princeton evolved over its first two centuries into a distinctive institution and campus culture. The second half examines the post-World War II era when Princeton became significantly more diverse (and in the 1960s coeducational), weathered an era of campus protest, created new structures for undergraduate life, and expanded its commitment to graduate education, research and new fields of knowledge. In a final chapter the book looks into Princeton's future with its president and some current students. Also included are profiles of the four presidents who have led Princeton since World War II and brief sketches on topics that range from Princeton's athletes and its Nobel laureates to things named after Princeton and the phenomenon of Princeton reunions.
Don Oberdorfer has written a gripping narrative history of Korea's travails and triumphs over the past three decades. The Two Koreas places the tensions between North and South within a historical context, with a special emphasis on the involvement of outside powers.
Seminal works of cultural history that changed the way we think about ourselves.
In the Tet Offensive of 1968, Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces launched a massive countrywide attack on South Vietnam. Though the Communists failed to achieve their tactical and operational objectives, James Willbanks claims Hanoi won a strategic victory. The offensive proved that America's progress was grossly overstated and caused many Americans and key presidential advisors to question the wisdom of prolonging combat. Willbanks also maintains that the Communists laid siege to a Marine combat base two weeks prior to the Tet Offensive-known as the Battle of Khe Sanh--to distract the United States. It is his belief that these two events are intimately linked, and in his concise and comp...
In 1961, at the height of the Cold War, the United States severed diplomatic relations with Cuba, where a momentous revolution had taken power three years earlier. For more than half a century, the stand-off continued--through the tenure of ten American presidents and the fifty-year rule of Fidel Castro. His death in 2016, and the retirement of his brother and successor Raúl Castro in 2021, have spurred questions about the country's future. Meanwhile, politics in Washington--Barack Obama's opening to the island, Donald Trump's reversal of that policy, and the election of Joe Biden--have made the relationship between the two nations a subject of debate once more. Now, award-winning historian...