Viet Nam in Flames, by Nguyen Manh Dan & Nguyen Ngoc Hanh

Published with the assistance of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) in c.1970. 222 pages. Large Hardback with Dust Jacket - c.27cm by 33cm (A47N3WSO)

Has a single type written sheet attachedto the first inside page which reads: "Presented to Lt Col B.A.H. Parritt, MBE, by the students of the 43rd ARVN Combat INtelligence Course', and below this are the names of the South Vietnamese officers who were on the course - 4 Majors, 6 Captains and 14 Lieutenants. Brian Parritt served in the British Army for over 3 decades and during his military career he held a variety of senior Intelligence and Security appointments, culminating in five years as Director of the Army Intelligence Corps. This presentation label suggests he was in South Vietnam in 1970.

From the inside front fly leaf: An ugly protracted war has crippled the Republic of Viet Nam for many years. It still does. For over a decade, a whole nation of nearly 15 million people has courageously fought to re­pel the Communist invaders. It still does. It fights also to block Communist efforts to use South Viet Nam as a springboard to jump over other coun­tries. But the atrocities of Communist warfare, like the tenacious urge for survival of the South Vietnamese are little known.

This album is a valuable and pleasant complement of the books on the Viet Nam war. Its photos are multiple mir­rors of the innumerable and often un­known facets of a great tragedy the stakes of which are beyond the mere existence of a small nation. Saigon afire, Hue in a background of devasta­tion show the determination of a ruth­less enemy implacable in the face of the destruction and death he causes everywhere he goes. Whether he enters a house, a village or a city, the Com­munist trails a wake of fire, sobs and ruins. Present Viet Nam writhes under indescribable sufferinqs, But the album captures also a child hopping merrily with the aid of his crutches, a tooth­less old man looking confidently ahead of him, the faint smile of a wounded mother nursing her baby. Striking images of hope and courage amid the
furor of a cruel war.

The authors, Mr. Nguyen Manh Dan and Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Hanh are two well-known photographers who won domestic and international prizes on various occasions.

The condition of the book is generally ok. The dust jacket has several scuffs and blemishes, and creasing, nibbling and wear along the edges and corners. The inside of the dust jacket is yellowed and discoloured in parts. The red cover boards have some fading along the top and bottom edges. Inside, the spine is intact and all pages are intact and bound. There is considerable yellowing, foxing and discoloration to the first several inside pages, and some yellowing and foxing to other pages throughout. Pages 207 through to 215 have become loose but are still attached, and the spine is split along the binding of pages 214 and 215.