Thank you all. [applause] the coup in South Vietnam that led to the compile of the first lady, madame nhu, who spent decades in seclusion. Madam nhu was found in paris and trusted the author with her unpublished memoirs. This is about 45 minutes. [applause] well, im glad to look out to the audience and see that actually there are a lot of people, im sure, who actually were alive during the vietnam war and remember who madame nhu was. I was born after her compile, exile, but i was born into the world my family know quite a bit about that history. Monique, what surprised me most, especially now listening to the introduction, is that here is someone who actually was sent out of vietnam because of her relationship with the royal family and her role in the war in 1963, and you graduate in 2003. Why would you be interested in madame nhu . Who wouldnt be interested in madame nhu . She, from an early age, just captivated me. Everything i had come to know about vietnam, i was born in 1976, so a
Also in 2008 military historian bing west published his book, the strongest tribe, detailing his thoughts on military strategy during the war in iraq. And jon meachams boyle by of Andrew Jackson was also released that year. Visit booktv. Org to watch programs from the last 15 years and continue watching booktv all weekend long for more nonfiction authors and books. Youre watching booktv. Coming up next, Monique Demery recounts the coup in South Vietnam that led to the exile of the de facto first lady, madam nu, who spent many decades in seclusion. She found her in paris where the woman dubbed the dragon lady entrusts the author with her unpublished memoir withs. This is about 45 minutes. [applause] well, im glad to look out to the audience and see that, actually, there are a lot of people, im sure, who actually were till alive during the still alive during war and knew who madam nhu. I mean, i was born after her exile, but still, i was born into the war k. And my family know quite a bi
Think that they are bumpkins who dont think deeply about the problems of butter and the. Frankly, i am envious of the. How wonderful the have the certainty that some many of them have. The sense that there was a moment in life when gile spoke to them and told them of their purpose and gave them a sense of mission. Not to say i am not aware of the powerful place of doubt in these communities, but part of why i enjoy writing about them is because i find much about their world view very attractive and in the them for it. Host this is book tv on cspan2, and we are on the campus of the university of North Carolina at chapel hill. We have been talking with history professor molly worthen. Here is her most recent book apostles of reason the crisis of authority in american evangelicalism. Visit booktv. Org to watch any of the programs you see here on line. Type the of the war book title in the search bar on the upper lefthand side of the page and click search. You can also share anything uc ea
Quickly changed when i started learning all the facts. But i have the utmost respect for her. She was a strong woman in a tiny place and where was not okay to be a strong woman and i really think that she embodied a lot of the concepts that women face when they are trying to be ambitious in a place that wont let them express themselves and tries to put them down. So i have a lot of respect for her. And not only she had not only sprung detractors in the early 60s but a couple of people who really thought that she was a much more complex person and wanted to write about her were also women. You talk about marguerite higgins. Marguerite higgins and Clare Boothe Luce were big advocates of madame nhu. Its interesting i think we are living in a time where we see more interesting biographies written about clinical figures and particularly from asia that we have seen. It there was a really interesting biography last year of written by a woman and it seems like there is a different generation o
Also had had a daughter at 14. So all of those questions led me to pursue them. A very aristocratic family. We need to step back and say exactly who madam nhu was. He brotherinlaw, the brother of her husband became president of South Vietnam in 1956 or 55. 54 he becomes premier. So madam nhu was the de facto first lady, because the president of South Vietnam and theres a few titles before that, but for simplicity well calm him the president. He was a bachelor. That makes him sound like he was going to vegas on the weekends, but he was really very moral, he slept on a hardwooden cots. He signpersonally signed entry visas. Theres this kind of very catholic austere man who needs a first lady, someone to host the parties and go to the orphanages, host the flower shows. So madam nhu, his younger brothers wife becomes this woman and shes perfect for it. She looks great for the cameras, likes to be out there, and this sort of gives her a voice. All of her life i think she had been looking for