The late Bernard Fall presents a hard-hitting, cynical history of the French period in Vietnam in the 10 years just after WW2 and an even more critical look at the early U.S. efforts in the early 1960s. This is not light reading and its not pretty.It will give an accurate description of what the "West" faced over there. As any Vietnam Vet would attest, there is nothing "light" or "pretty" about that place and cynical is the only appropriate attitude. It's so obvious now how Ho Chi Minh and General Giap were successful."If only we knew then..." Mr. Fall also does a first rate job in compressing the conflict into less than 400 pages (including notes and appendices). He didn't have to recount every battle to paint his picture. This reader appreciates his account of Viet Cong convoy attacks -from only one first hand experience- they put cook, clerk and grunt alike in equal, sudden and random danger. Its ironic that the author met his sudden death in just that way. Serious students of the French years in Vietnam should read "Street Without Joy" first and then proceed to "Hell In a Very Small Place", which concentrates on the tragic but heroic struggle of the French Army at the garrison at Dien Bien Phu. Were he still with us,I'm sure M. Fall was one of those guys it would be great to hava a few beers with. What stories he could tell! I'd love to know more about the two prostitutes who were commended for bravery and proposed for medals! What would Westy say about that!

The late Bernard Fall provided us with the two best books on the First IndoChina War, or the French IndoChina War. The two book are "Street Without Joy" and "Hell in a very Small Place". These two books should be read to together, preferably "Street Without Joy" being the first book read. This book is required reading for any serious student of the French IndoChina War. It is a pity that many of the political leaders in the United States did not read these book and take away the lessons they imparted.

Nobody should begin to try to understand the catastrophe that U.S. involvement in Vietnam (& indeed in Laos & Cambodia) became without first reading Bernard B. Fall's 'Street Without Joy'. Many of America's generals read it, but as events show, they didn't understand it or take its lessons to heart.

Fall's account of the French Union Forces' experience in Southeast Asia is gritty, down-to-earth, fearless, & accurate. He went beyond the official communiques & press releases, beyond the brief of the usual war correspondents of the French Indochina War & thus, into 'Street Without Joy', Fall perspicaciously packed wealth of detail & nuance.

'Street Without Joy' is a bit dated in lexicon (but this latest edition contains an apt new foreword that does much to help the reader gain a useful appreciation of Fall's viewpoint), but its central truths remain accurate & valid & worthy of absorption by citizens, politicians, & military leaders alike. This book is a "must read" for any Vietnam-era scholar or writer, & many of its lessons continue to apply today in the war against terrorism.

Of course one should follow reading 'Street Without Joy' with a reading of Fall's masterpiece on the siege of Dien Bien Phu, 'Hell in a Very Small Place'. This pair of books has enduring value as histories, & as illumination for present-day & future citizens, soldiers, & leaders.

For any fan of military history, and particularly for those interested in America's involvement in South-East Asia, "Hell In A Very Small Place" is crucial reading. It is long and it is packed with enormous detail, but it tells a fateful story very well. After having read most of the literature on 60's Vietnam and the `American War' it was an eye-opener to learn of the role that the then US administration played in the French war of the 50's. 20/20 hindsight's a dangerous thing but after having read Fall's book one does wonder why the lessons of Dien Bien Phu and France's experience in Indo-China were not taken on board to a greater degree by subsequent American governments.

Great book if you want to know every minute detail about Dien Bien Phu. To me it spends way to much time with the politics of why and how France found itself in Vietnam. The book was full of redundant information. If half of that was removed from the content you would have 200 page book. Instead we have to slug through 500. I thought the best reading of the entire book was the last two chapters where the author threw off the formalities and gave a good overall picture of the French defeat. It seemed to take forever to get there though. The Finale, detailing the journeys of those that escaped was also fascinating. As well as the Postface, "Where are they now". Other than that I'd pass this one up unless you are really insane for French Indochina military history. I only gave it 4 stars because it is historically, about the most thorough writing on the subject.

This is it! This is the book that should be in the library of every seriou student of the Indo-China War. While this book concerns itself with primarily one battle in the war that occupied France from 1946 through 1954, what a battle it was!

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (March 13-May 8, 1954) was not as long as some, but it played such an important role in what was to follow that years after the fact, the name Dien Bien Phu is still met with equal amounts of disdain for French folly and admiration for the resolve of the Viet Minh, who ultimately defeated the best of the French Expeditionary Corps.

The late Bernard B. Fall has provided history students with a masterpiece of research, writing and scholarship. He first came to the attention of American military, political and diplomatic leaders in the early 1960s with his quintessential look at the French war effort in STREET WITHOUT JOY. He followed that success with HELL IN A VERY SMALL PLACE, which ironically was first released in early 1967, just weeks after the author was killed on Highway 1 (the old RC 1 - the Street Without Joy) while on patrol with United States Marines.

When the reader first opens this one volume history, he encounters the reasons for the French seizure of a valley 175 miles from their headquarters and main source of supply. The French High Command in Tonkin decided that controlling this valley would deny the Viet Minh access to the highlands of neighboring Laos and the mountain peoples who were more loyal to the French than they were to the Vietnamese.

After the airborne assault on the valley on 20 November 1953, the French consolidated their position and began to fortify the valley floor. A short time later, the field commander for Viet Minh forces, Vo Nguyen Giap decided that in order to ensure Viet Minh victory at the negotiating table, he must first inflict such a stunning defeat on French colonial forces that they will have no choice but to accede to Vietnamese nationalism and quit the "crown jewel" of their overseas empire.

Fall does an exceptionally fine job of describing French and Communist preparations for the cataclysmic battle. While he goes into great depth and technical detail, he never forgets that armies are composed of men and he also delivers to the reader all of the key French and Viet Minh personalities. There are the names good students of this battle all know: there are Giap and Ho Chi Minh, Henri Navarre and Rene Cogny; we get to meet and know Colonel (later Brigadier General) Ferdinand Marie de la Croix de Castries, the aristocratic cavalry officer who commands French forces at Dien Bien Phu (and who is so totally unsuitable for the job). There is the paratroop "mafia" of young airborne officers who effectively take control of the fortress (Langlais, Bigeard, Botella, Brechignac, de Seguin-Pazzis, et al) and hold the Viet Minh at bay for 57 days.

But the French Colonial Paratroops were not alone at Dien Bien Phu. There were also Foreign Legionnaires, Algerian and Moroccan rifles, Tunisians, Senegalese, Moroccan artillerymen, grounded air force pilots and maintenance crews, Vietnamese paratroopers and local mountain troops of the Red and White T'ai. Fall forgets nothing and leaves no one out. His detailed descriptions of the battles and the travails of the garrison are on a daily basis and no details are missed.

Fall wrote this book with the help of the French Ministry of Defense, the North Vietnamese and after thousands of interviews with survivors of the battle (French, Communist Viet Minh, Vietnamese nationalist troops, Legionaires and the junior officers who learned bitter lessons in Indo-China and later applied them as they later attempted to keep Algeria French).

This is a battle that has fascinated two generations of students and teachers alike. It is hard to imagine a better single volume discourse on the subject, especially as time moves us further away from the battle. It was a battle that changed the outcome of France's war and ultimately led to American involvement. For it was LBJ who denied the French the aerial assistance of the B-29 bombers at Clark Field in the Philippines and it was this same LBJ, who 11 years later committed American troops to the endless quagmire that ended his presidency and tore the United States apart.

As a primer for the later American involvement, this book is mandatory reading for if for no other reason, it lays out the roadmap of French defeat and the limitless hubris of the United States as it stepped into the breach and tried to do what France could not. This is "the" book on the subject and it explains in vivid detail how one of the most modern armies of Europe could lose to a guerrilla force. It is about arrogance and hubris and anti-colonialist national aspirations.

Although the main position at Dien Bien Phu fell on 7 May and Strongpoint Isabelle a day later on May 8th, France did not sign the Geneva Accords on Indo-China until July 22, 1954. As the Vietnamese saw the end of 85 years of colonial rule by Paris and as France pulled out in defeated shame, little did anyone know that the shadow of Dien Bien Phu would continue to haunt a world superpower for years to come.

If you are not a student of this battle, I still recommend this book, because it is a natural starting point for anyone interested in finding out how America became embroiled in its longest and most divisive war.