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Title: Ho Chi Minh : A Life by William J Duiker ISBN: 0-7868-8701-X Publisher: Hyperion Pub. Date: 28 November, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.53 (19 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Not for the faint hearted
Comment: William Duiker researched extensively thru all available archives to compile all the information into this book about Ho Chi Minh, the myth and the patriot. If the readers enjoyed every little details about the developments of Uncle Ho, parties that he set up, meetings that he attended, negotiations that took place, etc., you would love this book. But for someone like myself who wanted to learn about Uncle Ho and Vietnam along the way, I find the book to be very time consuming to read and heavy handed to remember all those party names, Vietnamese names, small towns names. But the author did provide the readers with a heavy dose of pictures, maps of Vietnams in different periods, close ups of areas such as Dien Bien Phu which was significant for the creation of the modern Vietnam. In this book, we read about Uncle Ho's humble upbringing; his brief & tragic love life; his capture in Hong Kong which would almost cost him his life; his tireless efforts within the jungles trying to gain local support from small villages for his small but growing fast army; his extensive travel abroad; the exploitation of his own image as a simple person leading a simple life but fighting tireless for the betterment of his people; his assistance of the United States during the World War 2 campaign and along the way, he earned respects of many Americans but working relationships couldn't be carried thru due to the changes of Presidents; his pragmatism in clinging to countries that were willing to help him in attaining independence from France; and later on, his shrewdness in playing off a country with the other to obtain assistance to reunite North & South as one Vietnam entity; his last will to be cremated not adhered to but ended up embalmed in a Mausoleum. Many decisions he had made, some rite & some wrong & towards the end, the author analysed if Uncle Ho is in fact a Communist or a patriot. In the book, it said that despite Uncle Ho is not as revered by the younger Vietnamese generations these days, and that his legacy is not remembered in the South as much as in the North, his contribution towards Vietnam and that region is unmistakable, and the greatness of him doing anything for his country is to be admired and revered of. It also said that his replacements such as Le Duan simply lacked the charisma and the actions taken by him was bordering towards extremes rather than moderation, and therefore, further along, the support for his party seemed to wane, and the impacts caused by Le Duan's actions simply devastated Vietnam, and thus, the exodus of boatpeople, seeking a better life elsewhere. In this biography, readers would also understand why United States wouldn't intervene in France's colonialism of Vietnam after the World War 2 as it required its available force there to prevent the spreading of Communist power along the North, both USSR & China. But later, as the red power is gaining in force along the North, only then, the United States intervened in the South to prevent communism to be spread all around the world. But that was a marriage in hell with the Dien brothers as they supported the Catholics and therefore, they had a bad blood with the Buddhists and corruption was rampant, and that the population there was suffering. Moreover, with Khrushev in power in Russia, with his denouncement of Stalin, he wanted to keep the peace around the region & therefore, refused to endorse Vietnam engaging in war with the United States but China, on the other hand, reckoned a war was imminent and all this while, Uncle Ho, wished to keep concile both countries as inner conflict would give the Communism a bad name. Should readers simply want to learn about Vietnam, I do recommend another great book, which certain parts of the book is used as excerpts in Ho CHi Minh biography anyway: The Sacred Willow written by Duong Van Mai Elliott. It told the story of a Vietnamese family spanning 4 generations and by reading the plights of the family members who comprised of both Northerners and Southerners and the situations happening around them, you would get a feel of the developments of Vietnam towards the end. A superb effort.
Rating: 5
Summary: Capturing Uncle Ho
Comment: At times while tracing the life of Ho Chi Minh, William Duiker must have felt like the French security service in the 1930's. Even as a biographical subject, Ho remains elusive, difficult to grasp and hard to capture. Yet, this biography goes a long and powerful way in demystifying an extraordinarily complex figure.
Duiker makes a cogent case for Ho as a genuine revolutionary bent essentially on the independence of Vietnam. His contention that Ho was not simply a nationalist pragmatically using Marxist-Leninism is persuasive. Yet, it also appears tragically clear that Ho was willing to put his enormous influence behind a rapprochment with the U.S. in the late 40's. An opportunity to avoid the subsequent catastrophe for both sides was lost.
Perhaps the strongest portions of the book deal with Duiker's explication of Ho's extraordinary ability to perceive the consequences of the global political scene; his ability to divine both the long-term and short-term consequences to Vietnam of the actions of the major powers. Additionally, Duiker's book is very insightful regarding Ho's position within his own party. He was essentially a moderate who had to negotiate with radical hard-liner's. One could see him as a victim of the success of his own party.
If the book has a failing, that failing cannot be laid at the feet of the author. In reading about Ho, one cannot help but feel that an enormous amount of information will never be available--either because it no longer exists, because it does not serve the purposes of those with the information to release it or that, in the case of China for instance, it will never allow access to significant archival material. Consequently, in reading about Ho I had the sense that I would never know his complete story. (Virtually nothing exists apparently about his personal life in this book. I am sure that is partially related to the fact that Ho's life was the movement he created, but some of it is undoubtedly because that part of his life was intentionally kept out of view). Nonetheless, the book is painstakingly annotated and detailed, and Duiker undoubtedly knows his subject.
The final quibble I have with the book is that it seemed oddly sanitized of violence. After all, Ho's actions led to conflicts over 30 years leading to millions of deaths. No doubt the book could not dwell on the destructiveness of the two Indochinese wars. Nonetheless, the book should have given more time to the consequences of the sacrifices Ho seemed to eternally preach. (Coincidentally, on the evening I finished the book, I read an article in the New Yorker regarding the longest held American POW. It was a good reminder of the horror of the conflict.)
This book deserves the highest compliment: it raises so many more fascinating questions about Ho and Vietnam, not because they were not adequately addressed, but rather because a great subject well-documented is endlessly fascinating. Its too bad Mr. Duiker is not available for Q & A.
Rating: 5
Summary: Most reliable and balanced biography of Ho Chi Minh
Comment: Dr. William Duiker's book is exceptional. A five-star book with an asterisk for special consideration. It is arguably the most reliable and balanced biography of Ho Chi Minh ever published. First of all, please note the book was dedicated "To the Vietnamese people," similar in many ways as to how Ho Chi Minh himself, amid critics, dedicated his life's work to the Vietnamese people. Regardless of how you feel about this important 20th century political leader, Duiker correctly places him from the most significant point of view -- that is to say, from the Vietnamese people's perspective first, and only then the world.
The biography beautifully melds historical gaps with hard facts. Anyone who was ever presented with such a dilemma would truly appreciate the genius with which the author was able to craft Ho Chi Minh's character and personality. Simply outstanding. Duiker does not deceive the reader into believing that his biography will answer all questions, but it does indeed illuminate one's understanding of how Ho Chi Minh operated and perhaps how he would have acted under different circumstances. A mysterious person becomes less mysterious, albeit not completely understood. As readers, we can't help but be grateful for the opportunity to learn and benefit from 30 years of research.
So impressive was Dr. Duiker's biography that we at Sonshi.com asked the author for an interview. He was open to any and all questions about Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh. From our experience, this is a mark of a true expert, someone who is on top of his or her field of study. Anyone who would like to learn more about Vietnam or Ho Chi Minh will certainly benefit from Duiker. In fact, anyone who is interested in how the 20th century was shaped should read this book, for Ho Chi Minh's influence was not relegated to only Indochina, but it was felt in the top industrialized nations as well.
We highly recommend William Duiker's Ho Chi Minh: A Life.
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