Friday, August 08, 2014

NO FRONT LINE - Inside stories of New Zealand's Vietnam War


Penguin Books - $45.00


Told in the voices of those who were there, No Front Line is an absorbing, frank, sometimes shocking account of New Zealand’s Vietnam War – a window into an episode of our history that cannot be ignored.
an episode of our history that cannot be ignored.
The Vietnam War was New Zealand’s longest and most controversial military engagement of the 20th century. Some 3500 New Zealanders served in Vietnam between 1963 and 1975, with 2014 marking 50 years since the first deployment of New Zealand service personnel to Vietnam.

No Front Line explores this war like never before, from the perspective of New Zealanders who were there at the time, in their own words: on operations, on a mission for good, on orders, or simply out for adventure. It relays military, civilian and domestic histories in a narrative that is at once sincere, direct and undeniable.

These war stories take readers on operations with gunners, infantrymen, pilots and troopers to face the fear and the heartbreak of devastating loss. The book also includes important reflections from non-combatant engineers, defence and civilian medics, aid workers and administrators; it profiles civilian and service personnel treating Vietnamese casualties in provincial hospitals; it places on record the integral role of women in Vietnam, as nurses, doctors, aid workers, journalists and entertainers. Back home in New Zealand, veterans’ families recall the war’s reach into the suburbs – both then and now.

No Front Line is compiled from over 150 veteran interviews recorded over five years. With more than 200 photographs, maps, a timeline, plus a dedicated microsite with extra/non-book content (accessible via a QR code printed on the book), it presents a rich and comprehensive window into our collected experience of the Vietnam War.

About the author
CLAIRE HALL is a writer and historian with 10 years’ experience recording and producing oral history for print and the web. She managed the Vietnam War oral history and digital archiving project for the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, curating five exhibitions over the project’s life. Claire has also produced numerous multimedia features and a documentary film about the Vietnam War. This is her first book.
Claire lives in New Plymouth, Taranaki.

CLAIRE HALL IS AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS

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