The six-month siege of Khe Sanh in 1968 was the largest, most intense battle of the Vietnam War. For 6,000 trapped U.S. Marines, it was a nightmare; for President Lyndon Johnson, an obsession. For General Westmoreland, it was to be the final vindication of technological weaponry; and for General Giap, architect of the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu, it was a spectacular ruse masking troops moving south for the Tet offensive.

With a new preface by Mark Bowden--best-selling author of Black Hawk Down--Robert Pisor's immersive narrative of the action at Khe Sanh is a timely reminder of the human cost of war, and a visceral portrait of the turning point for American involvement in Vietnam. Readers may find the politics and the tactics of the Vietnam War, as they played out at Khe Sahn fifty years ago, echoed in our nation's global incursions today.