One of his ten best books on war, as told to the Observer in 2010:
Read about another book on the list.A Rumor of War by Philip Caputo, 1977
Caputo was a US marine officer in Vietnam during some of the bloodiest fighting of the mid-1960s. He describes the misery and institutionalised brutality of the conflict in a fashion that goes far to explain why America lost that war. Many Americans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan have suggested that his tale foretold the manner of some tragic military follies repeated in the 21st century. Even if only a small minority of soldiers commit atrocities, many young Americans at war find it hard to treat perceived primitive peoples with respect or even humanity.
Also see Max Hastings's five best eyewitness battlefield accounts.
--Marshal Zeringue
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