House to House: Playing the Enemy's Game in Saigon, May 1968

Military Review,  Jan-Feb, 2007  by Robert Rielly

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HOUSE TO HOUSE: Playing the Enemy's Game in Saigon, May 1968, Keith Nolan, Zenith Press, Osceola, WI, 2006, 368 pages, $24.95.

Keith Nolan is well known for his critically acclaimed histories of the Vietnam War. His 11th and latest book, House to House, should be equally well received and may in fact be one of his best books to date.

Following the Tet Offensive in February and March 1968, and prior to the start of the Paris Peace talks, Hanoi needed a political goal. North Vietnamese leaders therefore embarked on an operation to prove they could once again invade Saigon. Their purpose was to cause as much damage as possible by compelling U.S. and Vietnamese forces to fight in and destroy the city's neighborhoods. House to House tells the story of four 9th Infantry Division battalions that fought in the southern suburbs of Saigon in May 1968, including one battalion that entered combat for the first time.

Nolan gives us an unvarnished, realistic portrayal of life in an infantry unit fighting an elusive enemy. The chaos associated with urban combat (including civilians on the battlefield and media interaction) is realistically portrayed through first-person accounts. The book also provides an excellent and thorough account of the leadership challenges the officers and NCOs faced while fighting in urban terrain. It considers their failings and shortcomings as leaders, the emotions associated with losing men to booby traps and ambushes, and the causes and effects of poor discipline. One of the most valuable and interesting aspects of this book is the detail it offers about the motivations and thoughts of leaders and their subordinates.

Nolan concludes that the U.S. forces won a pyrrhic victory. Although they defeated the enemy, they flattened neighborhood after neighborhood of the predominantly pro-American Vietnamese who lived in southern Saigon. The friendly population was caught in the middle.

House to House is exceptionally well written and easy to read, and it evinces a depth of research that readers may not find in other literature written about urban operations today. It is filled with remarkable stories that are seamlessly weaved together. I highly recommend it to all readers because of its relevance to the challenges facing leaders today.

LTC Robert Rielly, USA, Retired, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

COPYRIGHT 2007 U.S. Army CGSC
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning