Prof. Larry Berman signs the books for Vietnamese readers. Prof. Larry Berman talks with Vietnamese readers in June 2008 in Hanoi . Prof. Larry Berman and his book’s character, intelligence Major-General Pham Xuan An. Prof. Larry Berman burns joss-sticks at Pham Xuan An’s grave. “Perfect Spy”, a book by American author Larry Berman, is about the contributions of intelligence agent Pham Xuan An that led to America ’s failure during the Vietnam War.   Berman was in the country recently to speak to readers of his book, a 2007 best-seller which has been translated into Vietnamese and published by the Vietnam News Agency Publishing House. Berman confessed he had some very interesting discussions, mainly because it’s unusual for an American to write about a Vietnamese spy. “I knew from the first time we met that Pham Xuan An was a very convincing person with a mysterious name. He took me to all corners of his mysterious life”. Answering the question of why he chose Pham Xuan An as a character in his book, Larry Berman said: “His life was very interesting. He was both an excellent journalist and a perfect spy. For the 23 years he worked both jobs, he had many friends and was still able to maintain his cover. An was also a humanitarian but overall was his powerful love for his country. That’s the reason why it interested me and urged me to write this book”. Pham Xuan An selected Larry Berman to write about him because Berman showed a passion for the story and An liked some other books Larry had published about Vietnam .  An was nearing the end of his life when the two finally started collaborating on Perfect Spy. “He believed that the book would be useful to both Vietnamese and American people, especially young people. That’s why I selected Pham Xuan An and he selected me,” Berman said. To complete the book, Berman spent countless time and unimaginable effort. He came to Vietnam 25 times over five years to seek documents and meet An and his acquaintances during the war to acquire and check the information. Larry Berman said: “Each time I came to Vietnam I spent two weeks with him, meeting every morning from 8:30 until mid afternoon”.   Asked if “Perfect Spy” is his favourite book, Berman confided: “Perfect Spy is my favourite book. An taught me about things that I thought I had known but really didn’t.  I had seen Vietnam but didn’t really understand the country until I met An”. Mr. Berman also said that the presence of the book in Vietnam and the United States is good because people find strange things in it. The CIA also keeps the book on its website and is interested in it. The book shows the intelligence and mind of a person. “The United States ignored thousands of years of Vietnamese history and that was the reason of its failure in the war,” Berman said. “I am satisfied that I am the first historian to write the book on An’s life. Regrettably, An never saw the book I had written about him. After finishing the book I took it to his grave”. Larry Berman said that the script for the film about An’s life had been written. “It’s my dream that this film will be made in Vietnam . I think the cooperation between the American and Vietnamese filmmakers will be the greatest honour the former adversaries can pay to Pham Xuan An. I want to say that I am a good friend of Vietnam and I love this country. My love is greater since I finished the book”. Larry Berman is a professor of political science at the University of California – Davis . He has been awarded many scientific prizes and has written many books on political, diplomatic topics and some books on Vietnam, such as “No Peace, No Honor: Nixon, Kissinger and Betrayal in Vietnam ” and “Perfect Spy”. “Perfect Spy” has 841 pages and includes seven chapters focusing on the great events in the life and cause of a major-general and a hero of Vietnam People’s Army, Pham Xuan An who was an intelligence agent and a journalist. The English version of the book named “A Perfect Spy” with over 300 pages was published by HarperCollins Publishers. Story by Vuong Mo - Photos by Trong Chinh, File