Perfect Spy: The Incredible Double Life of Pham Xuan An Time Magazine Reporter and Vietnamese Communist Agent

“One of the most fascinating figures in Vietnam during the War was Pham Xuan An, a Time correspondent; and, unbeknownst to me and my colleagues who covered the conflict, a clandestine Vietcong agent. Larry Berman has unraveled the mystery of his strange double life in an engrossing narrative.”  — Stanley Karnow, author of Vietnam: A History and winner of the Pulitzer Prize

The extraordinary story of North Vietnam’s most successful spy

During the Vietnam War, Time reporter Pham Xuan An befriended everyone who was anyone in Saigon, including American journalists such as David Halberstam and Neil Sheehan, the CIA's William Colby, and the legendary Colonel Edward Lansdale—not to mention the most influential members of the South Vietnamese government and army. None of them ever guessed that he was also providing strategic intelligence to Hanoi, smuggling invisible ink messages into the jungle inside egg rolls. His early reports were so accurate that General Giap joked, "We are now in the U.S. war room."

In Perfect Spy, Larry Berman, who Pham Xuan An considered his official American biographer, chronicles the extraordinary life of one of the twentieth century's most fascinating spies.

During the Vietnam War, Time reporter Pham Xuan An befriended everyone who was anyone in Saigon, including American journalists such as David Halberstam and Neil Sheehan, the CIA's William Colby, and the legendary Colonel Edward Lansdale—not to mention the most influential members of the South Vietnamese government and army. None of them ever guessed that he was also providing strategic intelligence to Hanoi, smuggling invisible ink messages into the jungle inside egg rolls. His early reports were so accurate that General Giap joked, "We are now in the U.S. war room." For more than twenty years, An lived a dangerous lie—and no one knew it because he was a master of both his jobs.

After the war, An was named a Hero of the People's Army and was promoted to general—one of only two intelligence officers to ever achieve that rank.

In Perfect Spy, Larry Berman, who An considered his official American biographer, chronicles the extraordinary life of one of the twentieth century's most fascinating spies. In doing so, he offers a new perspective on a war that continues to haunt us.

Praise for NO PEACE NO HONOR “A marvelous piece of work.” - Daniel Ellsberg

Praise for NO PEACE NO HONOR “Carefully researched, authoritative, and highly readable.” - Stanley Karnow, author of Vietnam: A History

Praise for LYNDON JOHNSON’S WAR “A masterful job.” - Marvin Kalb

Praise for LYNDON JOHNSON’S WAR “Highly readable, full of telling quoted from newly opened sources.” - Walter Lafeber

Praise for LYNDON JOHNSON’S WAR “Berman has delivered the coup de grace.” - Townsend Hoopes

“Berman has unraveled the mystery of his strange double life in an engrossing narrative.” - Stanley Karnow, author of Vietnam: A History and winner of the 1991 Pulitzer Prize in history

“A remarkable blend of biography, history, and personal experience... Highly recommended.” ---A.O. Edmonds - Library Journal

“Berman has brilliantly captured Pham Xuan An’s incredible double life. His book is informative history with the attributes of a Cold War spy thriller.” - Robert Dallek

“A remarkable blend of biography, history, and personal experience . . . Highly recommended.” - Library Journal

“Larry Berman in his book—insightful, overdue, an authentic ‘Shock and Awe’ story—deftly humanizes the contradictions in An’s life” - -Bernard Kalb

“Berman has done an excellent job… There’s plenty here for both supporters and critics of the Vietnam War to ponder.” - Dan Southerland, former correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor in Saigon