{"product_id":"the-village-of-ben-suc-9781681378497","title":"The Village of Ben Suc","description":"\u003cb\u003eWith a new introduction by Wallace Shawn, a classic work of war reportage that describes, with unblinking vision, the systematic leveling of a Vietnamese village by American troops.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBen Suc was a relatively prosperous farming village thirty miles from Saigon, on the edge of the Iron Triangle, the formidable Vietcong stronghold. It had been \"pacified\" many times, but because of security leaks no Vietcong were ever captured, and it always reverted to the villagers. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBut on January 8, 1967, American forces launched a surprise assault kept secret even from their South Vietnamese allies. The plan was to envelop the village, seal it off, remove its inhabitants, destroy every physical trace, and level the surrounding jungle. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJonathan Schell accompanied the operation from its beginning to its successful but dismal end, and reported it in depth as he saw it. This time no one slipped away. The story of the bewildering task of separating the Vietcong from ordinary villagers is the dramatic core of \u003ci\u003eThe Village of Ben Suc\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHere is an overwhelmingly affecting narrative of American skill and good intentions squandered in a cause made hopeless by misunderstanding, resistant traditions, and cultural gaps--not only between the Americans and the villagers, but between the villagers and the Saigon government. Schell's report is devastating.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New York Review of Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/29\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781681378497\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 160\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.81lbs","brand":"Jonathan Schell","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44608390365365,"sku":"9781681378497","price":14.41,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_b71fced0-e5a3-4b84-8042-c907b695668a.jpg?v=1725374597","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-village-of-ben-suc-9781681378497","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}