Author asserts that the hopes of loved ones are kept alive by those who would exploit their sorrow.

Reveals how wartime loss in the Vietnam War transformed U.S. politics, arguing that the effort to recover lost warriors was as much a means to establish responsibility for their loss as it was a search for answers about their fate.

Explores the POW/MIA issue through numerous interviews with soldiers and other notable figures.

Almost two decades after the Vietnam War, most Americans remain convinced that U.S. prisoners are still being held captive in Southeast Asia, and many even accuse the government of concealing their existence. But as H. Bruce Franklin demonstrates in his startling investigation, there is no plausible basis for the belief in live POWs. Through scrupulous research, he shows for the first time how this illusion was fabricated and then converted into a powerful myth. Franklin reveals that in 1969 the Nixon administration, aided by militant pro-war forces, manufactured the POW/MIA issue to deflect attention from American atrocities in Vietnam, to undermine the burgeoning anti-war movement, and to stymie the Paris peace talks, resulting in the prolongation of the Vietnam War for another four years. Successive administrations, in an effort to mobilize public support for their continued economic and political warfare against Vietnam, asserted the possibility of live POWs at great emotional cost to both family members of the missing and countless Americans distressed about the fate of those supposedly left behind in Indochina. Born of political expediency, the POW/MIA issue was transformed in the 1980s into a potent myth. American culture was transfigured as movies and novels designed to reimage the Vietnam War turned the imagined post-war POWs into crucial symbols of betrayed American manhood and honor. Finally the myth began to turn against its creators when many Americans became convinced that the government itself was conspiring to betray the missing men. As he traces the evolution of the POW/MIA myth, Franklin not only exposes it as an elaborate hoax at the highest levels of government, butalso explains why the myth has penetrated to the heart of American life. By confronting the "true tragedy of the missing in Vietnam", Franklin helps us to understand how to heal the terrible psychological and spiritual wounds of the Vietnam War.

Thirty-five long years and I was still seeking answers. If I could make someone in the government listen to the facts, I knew theyd want to act on them. After all, who wouldnt want to find one of our POW/MIAs from the Vietnam War? IS ANYBODY LISTENING? tells of dignitaries, presidents and those involved with the POW/MIA issue as Ive known it since November 1968 when my husband, a Special Forces officer, became missing-in-action. The pages reveal my feelings and torment during my many trips to Southeast Asia in search of answers, and my frustrations while wandering the halls of Washington D.C. for help. The book was written to show the issues insidious cover-up and my commitment to the truth.

A is for Artists painting the hardships of prison life. E is for Escape, as determined prisoners make daring plans to regain their freedom. More than one hundred thousand American service members have been captured by an enemy and imprisoned during war. Tens of thousands are still missing. This book tells the true stories of only a few of these brave men and women, but their stories represent the experiences of many others. The accompanying illustrations are based on surviving artwork, current and historic photographs, and firsthand descriptions of people, places, and events. From Geneva Conventions to Operation Homecoming, Tap Code to Yellow Ribbon and more, N is for Never Forget is a compelling journey through wartime history, honoring the sacrifices of prisoners of war (POWs), those missing in action (MIA), and their families. Poignant illustrations and stories capture key people, concepts, and memorials to help readers understand and honor the sacrifices endured by men and women prisoners of war and missing in action on behalf of freedom.

The first collection of Sydney Schanberg's work to be published.