Best Books About Saigon & Vietnam

Brushing up a bit on local history and culture can add so much to a person's trip. The extra knowledge gained will give depth and meaning to the various sites and attractions you will see around Saigon and Vietnam.

Saigon - A Good Read

Saigon from the antique's postcardSài Gòn Qua Buu Anh Xua
Saigon From The Antique's Postcard

Saigon was referred to as the pearl of the orient in colonial times, and thumbing through this book it is easy to see why. The book contains postcards of Saigon dating back from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and the classic French architecture, the beautiful gardens and the French gentlemen leisurely standing around in their white suit and pith helmets, all hint at the elegance and grace of an earlier Saigon.

It is great looking through the book at the pictures and recognizing buildings that still stand today, buildings such as the opera house or the old town hall. It is also interesting to see how the city has changed, to see that Nguyen Hue Boulevard was once a channel, and that Saigon streets have not always been congested with traffic.

Vietnam - More Than A War

The girl in the pictureThe Girl In The Picture,
The Story of Kim Phuc, the Photograph, and the Vietnam War
By Denise Chong

'The Girl In The Picture' portrays the life story of Phan Thi Kim Phuc. The girl forever immortalized as a 9 year running naked away from her burning village after a botched napalm strike. The picture is instantly recognizable to most, and has made Kim Phuc one of the most famous casualties of the Vietnam War.

Lucky to survive the bombing, it is intriguing reading about the rest of her life after the war. About how her own personal career ambitions were ignored as the Vietnamese government used her as an anti-war symbol. And about how she fled to Canada to start a new life, and has since become a goodwill ambassador for UNESCO.

General Giap, His YouthGeneral Giap,
His Youth
By Pham Hong Cu

Have you ever heard the name Vo Nguyen Giap? No? ...

...Well, I hadn't either until coming across this book. But as I was to find out, Giap was the most eminent military commander other than Ho Chi Minh. He was the mastermind behind both the massacre of the French at Dien Bien Phu, and the success of the Tet offensive in 1968.

He is the last surviving link to the earliest days of Ho's revolution. And this book examines his youth, and his growing particpation in revolutionary activity. Giap actively participated in various revolutionary movements and was arrested in 1930, spending two years in Lao Bao Prison.