The Girl in the Picture: The Story of Kim Phuc, the Photograph, and the Vietnam War

by Denise Chong

4 of 5 stars 1 rating • 1 review • 1 shelved
Book cover for The Girl in the Picture
Shelve It

Bookhype may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Full disclosure.

"More than any other Vietnam book in recent years, The Girl in the Picture confronts us with the ceaseless, ever-compounding casualties of modern warfare." —The San Francisco Chronicle

On June 8, 1972, nine-year-old Kim Phuc, severely burned by napalm, ran from her blazing village in South Vietnam and into the eye of history. Her photograph-one of the most unforgettable images of the twentieth century-was seen around the world and helped turn public opinion against the Vietnam War.

This book is the story of how that photograph came to be-and the story of what happened to that girl after the camera shutter closed. Award-winning biographer Denise Chong's portrait of Kim Phuc-who eventually defected to Canada and is now a UNESCO spokesperson-is a rare look at the Vietnam War from the Vietnamese point-of-view and one of the only books to describe everyday life in the wake of this war and to probe its lingering effects on all its participants.
  • ISBN10 0140280219
  • ISBN13 9780140280210
  • Publish Date 1 August 2001 (first published 31 August 2000)
  • Publish Status Active
  • Publish Country US
  • Publisher Penguin Putnam Inc
  • Imprint Penguin USA