The Sorrow of War A Novel of North Vietnam

by Bao Ninh

The author, an ex-North Vietnamese soldier, recounts his country's conflict with South Vietnam and the United States, through the eyes of Kien. In 1965, Kien joined a brigade of five hundred men fighting in action they did not begin. By war's end, Kien is one of only ten still alive. With the war over, Kien begins to write, trying to make sense of his survival. Some violence and some strong language. 1993.