Amazon.com: Customer reviews: The Village

Top positive review

Very accurate.

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2019

Vietnam 1966-67 1st. Bn. 5th. Marines. CAP. I Corps (Chulai).
In the book these Marines were in a fort kinda, we had a compound. They, the Marines in the book were in a large village. We, my Marines were in a more isolated smaller village doing the same thing as in the book. This is a book on what we CAP Marines did and is true down to the smallest details. 14 months I served in "CAP".
I am at 73yrs and still up every two hours each night. This book is very very well written and true. Semper Fi my CAP Brothers!! Welcome home.

10 people found this helpful

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Gregory A. Land

... is an interesting book but could have been written better. I never was able to get personally attached ...

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2014

It is an interesting book but could have been written better. I never was able to get personally attached to the characters.

One person found this helpful

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From the United States

imanamvet66

Very accurate.

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2019

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10 people found this helpful

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will5967

NOT Your Run of the Mill Book About the Vietnam War

Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2015

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What most impressed me about this book is that it is told not only from the point of view of the small group of hand picked American Marines who helped to defend "the Village," but because the author also devotes quite a bit of the narrative to the many local Vietnamese who took part in the factual events being depicted.

Many readers may have to exercise quite a bit of patience at first however, because despite a well structured framework, much of the first third of the book focuses almost exclusively on the night patrols that the Marines and their South Vietnamese allies were so often required to engage in throughout the war. As a result, the narrative sometimes seems to get lost in all the details, as one account of lying in wait for the enemy in the pitch black jungle night often feels very much like all the other, quite similar accounts. And if you're like yours truly, you may actually be more interested in the real life characters than all the obligatory military details and jargon. But don't let that deter you. Francis J. West Jr.'s The Village is still a very engrossing and highly educational read.

And honestly, it's hard to fault the author too much on account of the mostly monotonous details about all the mostly monotonous night patrols American soldiers had to endure in Vietnam, because all that gritty martial stuff is of course highly integral to telling the unique story of all the vivid characters that the author somehow manages to render so very exquisitely. And thankfully, as the narrative progresses, and with the introduction of a number of new characters and situations, everything in the book starts to feel a great deal more immersive, intimate, and truly quite riveting.

In fact, what author Bing West does best in The Village, is give readers an up close and very personal view of what life "in country" during the Vietnam war was really like. Yes, in my humble estimation, West seems most adept (and masterful, really) at rendering his highly authentic portraits of American and Vietnamese soldiers and civilians. Remarkably, neither side is automatically vilified or presented as cardboard cutout heroes or villains, and a more than worthy attempt is made in almost every case to paint a realistic picture of each and every individual presented in the book.

Best of all, this is not your run of the mill book about the Vietnam War! So I can only highly recommend it to absolute anyone, whether they have any interest in the Vietnam conflict at all or not. All the real life individuals (friends, foes and otherwise) that are chronicled in The Village are portrayed in a very no nonsense and unbiased fashion, and ultimately, that is what makes The Village such a highly memorable and truly outstanding read.

12 people found this helpful

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Mustang45

About The Village

Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2014

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To some, the Vietnam War was a chance for medals, promotions, and one day a star on their shoulder. To most, serving in Vietnam was their duty—a patriotic chore to serve their country. Along the way, a student of the Vietnam War will find countless demonstrations of raw courage and heroism: servicemen of all of our Armed Forces, giving of themselves for a greater purpose. Of course, nearly sixty thousand of our young men gave the ultimate sacrifice. Many more gave up their limbs, or suffered debilitating wounds —and from a psychological perspective, everyone left a part of themselves in Vietnam. However, few gave more than a squad of Marines assigned to protect the Vietnamese people living in a small coastal village, then named Binh Nghia.

This is a remarkable story told to us by former Marine Captain Francis J. “Bing” West, who later served as an assistant to the Secretary of Defense, and in the Reagan Administration as an Under-secretary of Defense. When Bing West returned to Binh Nghia 37 years later, he found an extraordinary thing: many of the villagers from 1966-1967 had died —particularly those who served alongside the Marines; some married and moved away from the village —and yet in spite of this, everyone living in the village in 2003 could recount stories about “their Marines.”

You see, the villagers passed down the stories of what happened in Binh Nghia to their children, then they told the stories to their children. Everyone knew what these Marines did, and as Mr. West walked through the village in 2003, one old farmer came to him and asked, “Tell me Dai U’y where is Sergeant Mac? Do you know Bill ... Marines number one, what happened to Monty? What happened to Frill (Phil)?” Not far away Mr. Bing found a marker resting between two palm trees, and on it a small inscription to the Marines who had built their well and shrine in 1967.

Herein lies the true pain of the Vietnam War. Young Americans went to Vietnam to fight a vicious and resourceful enemy. A few of these people ended up protecting a few thousand residents of a small village along the coast in Quang Ngai province. Most of the Marines cherished these simple people so much that they ended up dying for them. In return, the villagers ended up adopting these Marines; they remember their sacrifices even today. If only the American people had loved these Marines as much.

The Village is a worthwhile book, on many different levels.

10 people found this helpful

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05/11A

Vietnam, Marines

Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2012

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The book provides an historical review with specific individual accounts of Marines "embedded" with the population. As most from that era would recognize, the Marines had "jurisdiction" of the northern provinces of Vietnam, commonly known as I Corps. Although, 5th SFG worked the northern areas of Vietnam (MACV-North, their missions were focused on border operations (Brightlight, etc) of Laos and Vietnam. The book is an excellent read, especially as the focus of COIN today was reflected in the comments in this months (Feb/2012) Foreign Affairs magazine (as where I initially read Mr. West's comment on COIN.

Make no doubt the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 placed Afghanistan and what strategy at that time prevailed deeply in second place. As a direct hire/contractor for USAID standing up the 1st PRT in Gardez, Paktia, I witnessed military minimized due to the demands of Iraq. The only financial resource at that time for "hearts and minds" was the CERP (commander's emergency response program; USAID's only implementation partner (USAID is not a direct funding agency) was IOM (International Organization of Migration)..hardly an NGO with experience in "post war" infrastructure development. The last time a had experience IOM was in Haiti (Operation Uphold Democracy) with their mission moving people around from one IDP camp to another.

Although, I spent very little time at the Embassy, there were instances when I sat in on meetings (toward the end of my tour) with USAID's implementing partners in education, health care, infrastructure development (Louis Berger..the singular infrastructure development USAID partner in Afghanistan..schools, clinics..and the Kandahar-Kabul Road thru Ghazni). Because the Embassy folks and USAID managers would never venture from the Embassy, the inflated "success" of the implementation partners (NGO's-IO's) became a show. In one case, the presenters did not know there was a field rep for USAID who had traveled to Ghazni, Khost, Logar and Paktia on a daily basis (PRT commander/5th SFG/LTC was a real road warrior). Their assertions of projects was in some cases simply false.

Unfortunately, had some of the tenants of Mr. West's summaries in The Village combined with what we know from "all the talk" of COIN been implemented in early 2003, no doubt Afghanistan would be in much better strategic position than today...in short, we wasted perhaps seven (7) years..bleeding us financially and the tragic lost of alot of fine Soldiers, Marines, Air Force and Navy personnel.

Lessons learned from The Village and from the Ten Thousand Day War-Vietnam seemed to of been lost within the Administration of that time..and for Afghanistan, what momentum won was quickly lost.

Haiti/Bosnia/Croatia/Sudan/Afghanistan/Iraq/Sudan/Uganda/2010

RH

4 people found this helpful

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Motown

Fanning Flames of the Counterinsurgency Debate

Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2014

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A reprint of Bing West's famous narrative of a Marine Combined Action Platoon between 1966 and 1971. This well written narrative has become "must reading" for those interested in the theory and practice of counterinsurgency warfare. Many analysts consider the USMC CAPs to have been the most effective and innovative tactic developed during Vietnam; they were also a contentious issue between the U.S. Marines theory of counterinsurgency and General Westmoreland's insistence on "search and destroy" practices. Bing West has written more recent books on US involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan referencing lessons learned from Vietnam CAP experiences.

9 people found this helpful

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Fred Kiesche

Excellent Read Both as History and a Lesson for Today

Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2013

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In the Village, West details a two-year period (plus several follow-up visits) in the village of Binh Nghia (South Vietnam) when a "Combined Action Patrol" of USMC and local forces patrolled, interacted with the locals, and fought the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army to the point where the village was essentially at peace (until the fall of South Vietnam). The Marines involved were not special forces or especially trained for this; they developed standards on their own as to who would or would not fit in, slowly developed a means of operating with the locals, and, most importantly, were given time and enough operating room to succeed.

This book is part of the current edition of the Professional Reading List, promulgated by the Commandant of the Marine Corps. You can see how it would apply to Iraq and Afghanistan, but in the current environment of shifting strategies, short cycles, up-or-out promotions and the like, would a long-term strategy of patience work? Or be allowed to work?

An excellent read. I've already picked up a second book by West (on Afghanistan) and will pick up additional works by him. I read this book both as a paperback and an eBook (on two different eBook gadgets). Reading the eBook version enabled me to keep notes (and tweet the same notes), but for some reason the eBook does not have the photographs included in the paper edition.

4 people found this helpful

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Charlie

Great book on Vietnam

Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2020

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I was unaware of this village protected by a small force of Marines. An incredible tale of survival and American & Vietnamese bravery along with knowing how to play the political game that seems to frustrate them at key times. You wonder how many lives could have been saved without the ineptitude of higher command, poor coms and plain stupid interservice rivalry. Highly recommend.

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M. Gregorio

Now I know

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2012

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Now I know after after all these years what made these Marines in CAP units so special to the village and fellow Marines who served with each other.
At age 19 I was suddenly put into a CAP unit outside of DaNang, Quebec 4. The TET Offensive had just started, I and other Marines were installed there to help with extra security. We did not fit in with the regular CAP Marines.
The book tells of the dedication and bond the Marines had with the village people and the Popular Forces. I had only contempt for the PF's because I was not trained or had the personal compassion for the Vietnamese as the Cap regulars had.
The book goes into great detail of how extra ordinary a Marine must be living in an outpost with the shadow of death hanging continuously over them. Being responsible for the lives not only of their comrades but the people they are there to protect.
So now I know what it takes to be a CAP unit Marine thanks to this wonderfully written book.
Semper Fi

5 people found this helpful

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Capt. Jack

Outstanding "How To" book of counter-insugency

Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2013

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Exciting and compelling book! Early in the war, the Marines figured out how to "win the hearts and minds" of the Vietnamese. Operating along the coast where the overwhelming majority of South Vietnamese lived, they lived in the villages with the people gaining their trust. They were like the Peace Corps in the daytime, helping to dig a new well or to provide medical care while serving as the police at night ambushing Viet Cong who came to recruit, steal food and harass anyone loyal to the government. What a shame when Gen. Westmoreland got them to move inland for WWII style battles with the North Vietnamese.
This book is required reading by Marine officers because it applies to other engagements in so many cases.

2 people found this helpful

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Patrick M. Carroll

One of the best books I have read in a long time

Reviewed in the United States on July 19, 2009

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This is an incredible book. Very seldom do I find books that I just can't put down but this was one of them. I truly enjoyed how West made himself the inviisble person in this book, documenting the events that surrounded the men in his unit. I also admired how he left out the names of the soldiers whom he criticized. The tale feels honest and provides a perspective rarely seen in post-Vietnam America. Too often books about Vietnan are either apologetic or are technical in an effort not to offend. This book is neither. The world of these soldiers shrinks to the size of the village in which they serve. West is fair and even in his assessments of the US soldiers and of the Vietnamese. He demonizes people only as individuals and this only seldom. He makes a real effort to get at the true motivations of all the personalities involved. A unique and interesting perspective.

One person found this helpful

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