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Podcast: New Books in Art
Episode: James Reston, Jr., “A Rift in the Earth: Art, Memory and the Fight for a Vietnam War Memorial” (Arcade Publishing, 2017)
Description: My students don’t remember Vietnam.
That’s hard to believe, for someone born in 1968. But it’s true, nonetheless. High school history courses rarely make it past World War Two. The Cold War and the Berlin Wall are mysteries. And Vietnam, unless someone in their family fought there, is just a country.
But most, if not all, of my students have heard of the Vietnam Memorial. They may not know what or who it commemorates. But they’ve seen it on class trips, or in textbooks. And they universally praise its power and simplicity. So, unle...