Foreword: Nation-Making in the Mekong Mire by William Cronon

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1. Water's Edge

2. Water Grid

3. Hydroagricultural Crisis

4. Balkanization

5. Modernization

6. American War

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index

By exploring the delta as a quagmire in both natural and political terms, Biggs shows how engineered transformations of the Mekong Delta landscapechannelized rivers, a complex canal system, hydropower development, deforestationhave interacted with equally complex transformations in the geopolitics of the region. Quagmire delves beyond common stereotypes to present an intricate, rich history that shows how closely political and ecological issues are intertwined in the human interactions with the water environment in the Mekong Delta.

David Biggs is associate professor of history at the University of California, Riverside.