Backfire

by Loren Baritz

Discusses what led us into Vietnam, how it has changed our culture today and how it may change our culture in the future. This is the only book to examine the myths of the American culture that led us into the Vietnam quagmire in the first place. It exposes our national myths: the conviction of our moral supremacy, our assumptions that Americans are more idealistic than other people, and our faith in a technology that supposedly makes us invincible. It also discusses how Vietnam has changed American culture today, and in the future. -- Publisher description.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?