A Google search for a book on Vietnamese history will result in an overwhelming number about the war which ended in 1975. This book offers an overview of Vietnamese history from prehistory to the present day. It specifically focuses on the period from 700 to 111 BCE. It discusses the country's origins, the three characters which shaped its early history: the Hùng kings, An Dương Vương, Zhao Tuo and the battles involved during transfer of power from one to the next. The final battle ended the country’s autonomy and placed the country under Chinese dynastic rule for one thousand years to the 10th century. It also tells the stories of the mythical Four Immortals, the bronze drums in the north, the earrings in the centre and south. It recounts the tragic love story of the Magic Crossbow, the 2200-year-old fort of Co Loa. It is written from a traveller’s perspective and has 71 photographs, maps and diagrams