Ho Chi Minh’s epic life helped shape the twentieth century. But until now, there has never been a major biography of this immensely important and elusive figure. Finally, William J. Duiker, a world-renowned authority on Vietnam, has filled this gap with an astonishing work of history that takes full advantage of information and archives only recently declassified. What emerges is a riveting portrait of a man who went from a tiny village to the heady environment of London and Paris during and after World War I; from years in prison and on the run to a place on the world stage alongside the key players of our time.

It is not possible to understand modern Vietnam and the roots of the lengthy conflict in Indochina without examining Ho Chi Minh’s life. By accessing original documents in five languages, Duiker has been able to shed new light on the question of Ho’s primary motivation: Was he simply a patriot bent on achieving Vietnamese independence, or a chameleon who constructed a deceptive nationalist image solely to win support, at home and abroad, for global proletarian revolution? Engrossing and impeccably researched, Ho Chi Minh is a revelatory portrait of one of the most towering and mysterious figures of our time, a charismatic leader whose legacy continues to inspire and confound.