Street Without Joy Audiobook By Bernard B. Fall cover art

Street Without Joy

The French Debacle in Indochina

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Street Without Joy

By: Bernard B. Fall
Narrated by: Derek Perkins
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About this listen

In this classic account of the French war in Indochina, Bernard B. Fall vividly captures the sights, sounds, and smells of the savage eight-year conflict in the jungles and mountains of Southeast Asia from 1946 to 1954. The French fought well to the last, but even with the lethal advantages of airpower, they could not stave off the Communist-led Vietnamese nationalists, who countered with a hit-and-run campaign of ambushes, booby traps, and nighttime raids. Defeat came at Dien Bien Phu, in 1954, setting the stage for American involvement and opening another tragic chapter in Vietnam's history.

©1964 Bernard B. Fall (P)2013 Tantor
France Southeast Asia Vietnam War Military War French Indian War
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What listeners say about Street Without Joy

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Still great after all these years.

What did you love best about Street Without Joy?

It showed how a great military force that adapted to the terrain still got beaten. The French forces were made up of so many brilliant soldiers and they were creative in dealing with their enemies, but were undone by political factors that they did face, but not as well as their enemies.

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3 people found this helpful

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Great..

This book is just as great as I was told it was. I recommend it. If it’s not on the West Point reading list…it should be.

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Great firsthand insight to first indochina war

Bernard Fall gives a great firsthand perspective of the French conflict in Indochina. He also provides a brief glimpse into how America was slowly pulled into the conflict.

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1 person found this helpful

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Amazing Bit of History

Wonderfully performed. This book is important to anyone looking for background on the geopolitics that gave birth to The United States disastrous involvement in Vietnam.

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Excellent

You’re an idiot if you don’t listen to this and pay attention to its lessons. Which means you may be a flag level officer.

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Great book, lousy narrator

What did you love best about Street Without Joy?

Dr. Fall wrote an excellent and factual account that is an excellent read. I have been in many of the locations and walked, or drove, over the ground.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Perhaps Perkins was using British pronunciation but his Vietnamese pronunciation really sucks. I found it very distracting and at times a bit hard to follow. Too bad, there are plenty of ways to get correct pronunciation.

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Great Book!

Easy to follow. Narrator was easy to understand and I love when he lent his accent to the french parts.

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overall good

the narrator is hard to listen to. very matter of fact and mono toned. but overall a very good book

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Classic Vietnam battle tactics.

Narration: clear and good match for content.

Content: nothing to add to evaluations made by virtually all other reviewers. Knowing of French debacle should have steered Johnson and his supporters clear of the Vietnam war. They should have been prosecuted for their deceiving the American people into prosecuting a senseless war..

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Factually correct

Where does Street Without Joy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

a nine out of 10 compared to other audio books

What did you like best about this story?

Facts seemed correct

Which scene was your favorite?

When the soldiers were watching the woman cook and realized she was cooking more than she needed and they figured out there were tunnels where the enemy was hiding.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

not really

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