Joseph A. Fry is Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA. His most recent books include Dixie Looks Abroad: The South and U.S. Foreign Relations, 1789-1973 and Debating Vietnam: Fulbright, Stennis, and Their Senate Hearings.
"Joseph A. Fry offers a convincing regional explanation for the
Vietnam War's escalation and duration. In doing so, he adds needed
insights into a larger national and international story as well as
contemporary American politics. Fry captures the nuances and
agonies of the American South's struggles over the war. He draws on
an impressive amount of research -- letters, archives, polling, and
news media -- to provide an all-but-the-kitchen-sink history of the
American South and the Vietnam War." -- Journal of American-East
Asian Relations
"If one is looking for an authoritative history of the
Vietnam War and the American South, this is it. With his fourth
book on the subject of the South and US foreign relations, the
author of this study has proven himself to be the leading expert in
this area. He masterfully mines all of the relevant primary and
secondary sources on the South in the Vietnam War, creating the
definitive history of this topic to date." -- Historian
"Built on exhaustive research and a lifetime of study of US
foreign policy, Joseph Fry has written the definitive work on the
South and the Vietnam War." -- Pacific Historical
Review
"Fry is a veteran scholar who has skillfully and perceptively
written about the complex politics of Vietnam, and he has
consistently highlighted the South's complicated perspective on the
war." -- Ohio Valley History
"Joseph A. Fry convincingly demonstrates that the American
South had a particularly strong influence on both foreign policy
and the prosecution of the Vietnam War. The book is well researched
and provides a nuanced look at the region's complex and important
role in the war. The American South and the Vietnam War provides
valuable insight into how one region of the United States
influenced and dominated American foreign policy and ultimately the
decision to go to war in Vietnam." -- Register of the Kentucky
Historical Society
"A major contribution in an undeveloped area of foreign
relations. Fry's research is superb and his writing is clear and
persuasive." -- George C. Herring, author of From Colony to
Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations since 1776
"A major contribution to the existing literature on the Vietnam conflict. The American South and the Vietnam War intervenes in key and historiographically underdeveloped conversations regarding the role of domestic politics and domestic regionalism in the making and implementation of U.S. foreign policy. It will be the gold standard on the topic." -- Andrew L. Johns, Brigham Young University
"An important book on the Vietnam War and American culture. Fry is the leading expert on the topic, and no other book of this scope exists. The South played a significant role in the policymaking and conduct of the war, and the way it reacted to and was affected by the war are critical to understanding this pivotal era." -- John Ernst, Morehead State University
"Dixie loomed large over the American political landscape of the
1960s, particularly during the Vietnam conflict, and Joseph Fry
captures its power. He masterfully balances the South of martial,
conservative, and religious reputation with a nuanced treatment of
the less-known aspects of the region's influence, including antiwar
activism. Sensitive and judicious, this book portrays a region with
grace and clarity, and gives that region its due in the national
story. Regionalism itself is wielded smartly to analyze foreign and
domestic policies. A tour de force for regional studies." -- Thomas
W. Zeiler, author of Annihilation: A Global Military History of
World War II
"This is a nicely written and exhaustively researched study of the South's integral role in shaping national events and its divided reaction to and impact on the Vietnam War. A welcome addition to the field." -- Howard Jones, University Research Professor of History Emeritus, University of Alabama
"While recent trends in the writing of U.S. history have emphasized globalization, it is also true that regional trends within the American national story remain significant. In The American South and the Vietnam War, Joseph Fry offers great insight into how the regional identity of the American South intersected with the making of U.S. foreign relations in the crucial engagement in Southeast Asia. Anyone interested in recent American history will enjoy this deeply researched study" -- Thomas Borstelmann, author of The 1970s and The Cold War and the Color Line
"Winner of the 2015 Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council Award for Excellence in Research Using the Holdings of Archives" --
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