Book review by Corey
Kill Anything That Moves
Kill Anything That Moves looks at the Vietnam War through the experiences of Vietnamese civilians and the American military policies that shaped what happened to them. Nick Turse pulls together military records, investigations, interviews with veterans, and testimony from survivors to argue that atrocities like My Lai weren’t simply isolated incidents carried out by a few soldiers.
I wasn’t expecting this to be quite so difficult to read, mostly because the amount of evidence just keeps piling up. Some of the individual stories are horrible, but what really got to me was seeing how things like body counts, military pressure, and decisions made far above the soldiers could affect entire villages. It can get dense and repetitive in places, but this book left me thinking about things I hadn’t expected to question.
The Goods
- Extremely well researched
- Strong use of firsthand accounts
- Shows the civilian side of the war
- Challenges the idea that atrocities were isolated
- Gives a much wider picture of how the war was fought
The Bads
- Very difficult subject matter
- Some sections get extremely detailed
- The amount of violence can become exhausting
- Certain points are repeated throughout
- Definitely not a casual history read
My Recommendation
This is a strong choice if you’re interested in the Vietnam War but want to look beyond battles, generals, and the usual military history. What stayed with me most was how the book connects individual atrocities to the larger way the war was being fought instead of treating every incident as something completely separate. If you can handle some extremely disturbing material and you don’t mind a heavily researched, detailed approach, Kill Anything That Moves gives you a side of the war that’s very hard to forget.
