Counterpart: A South Vietnamese Naval Officer's War - Hardcover

Do, Kiem; Kane, Julie

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1557501815 ISBN 13: 9781557501813

Publisher: Naval Inst Pr, 1998

Synopsis

Amid the chaotic fall of Saigon in April 1975 Capt. Kiem Do, deputy chief of staff for operations in the South Vietnamese Navy, secretly planned and quietly carried out the evacuation of thirty-five ships and some thirty thousand at-risk South Vietnamese. That disciplined retreat is only one of many little-known events of the war recalled in this revealing memoir, the first to be published in English by an officer of the South Vietnamese Navy. Also included are first-person accounts of skirmishes against the Binh Xuyen pirates, life with Diem and Madame Nhu, the foiled communist car-bomb attack on Saigon's naval headquarters during Tet, and the 1974 sea battle between China and South Vietnam. In addition to viewing particular events from a Vietnamese perspective, this book offers an intimate look at the human side of the war, at Vietnamese culture, and at the relationship between the men of the South Vietnamese Navy and their American counterparts - specifically, the naval advisers who crossed paths with Kiem.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

"Counterpart is a brutally honest tale of Captain Kiem's and his family's experiences in the Vietnam War. As his 'counterpart' for part of that war and a player in the events he describes, I find this book a must read for those who would understand the brown-water war that could not be won."-Adm. Paul A. Yost Jr., USCG (Ret.), Commandant of the Coast Guard 1986-90

"As the Operations Officer for RLT-4 during the Saigon evacuation in 1975 and witness to the emotions of the departure of a few while leaving so many behind, I read Kiem Do's story with great anticipation. It is an engaging account by a man I have come to admire-a must read for all."-Maj. Gen. James E. Livingston, USMC (Ret.), Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, I Corps 1968 at Dai-Do

"The Navy of the Republic of Vietnam never surrendered. Instead, in accordance with the best tradition of navies, the ships got underway with families aboard and turned themselves over to the United States at Subic Bay in the Philippines. The story of the heroic way in which this was accomplished is part of the life story of Kiem Do, an illustrious and patriotic veteran."-Adm. Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., USN (Ret.)

"As well written and detailed as most novels, Counterpart gives a fascinating view of the Vietnam War from a drastically under-represented point of view-the Vietnamese. This is an important-even indispensable-book."-Robert Olen Butler, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain

About the Author:

Kiem Do was a captain in the South Vietnamese Navy and the deputy chief of staff for operations when Saigon fell in 1975.

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Inst Pr
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 1557501815
• ISBN 13: 9781557501813
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 233