"Using new and largely inaccessible Vietnamese sources as well as French, British, Canadian and American archives, Pierre Asselin sheds valuable light on Hanoi's path to war. Step by step the narrative makes Hanoi's revolutionary strategy from the end of the French Indochina War to the start of the Anti-American Resistance Struggle for Reunification and National Salvation (the Vietnam War) transparent. The book reveals how North Vietnamese leaders moved from a cautious policy emphasizing nonviolent political and diplomatic struggle to a far riskier pursuit of military victory"-- Supplied by publisher.

Choosing peace, 1954-1956 -- Changing course, 1957-1959 -- Treading cautiously, 1960 -- Buying time, 1961 -- Exploring neutralization, 1962 -- Choosing war, 1963 -- Waging war, 1964.