Erin Lin's When the Bombs Stopped examines the enduring scars left by the Vietnam War on Cambodia's land and people. Through a meticulous blend of ethnographic fieldwork, statistical analysis, and historical insight, Lin uncovers how unexploded ordnance (UXO) has reshaped Cambodian rural life, creating a paradoxical mix of entrapment and protection. Lin's five chapters guide readers through the intricate ways conflict reshapes both the environment and societal structures.

The opening chapter, “The Pen Family Farm,” sets the stage with a poignant narrative of a farming couple unable to fully use their fertile land due to the lingering threat of UXO. Lin argues that the material legacies of war—whether bomb craters or undetonated cluster munitions—permanently alter the sociopolitical and economic landscapes in postconflict societies, trapping civilians in terrains shaped by war's destruction.

In “In Suspect Terrain: How War Changes Land,” Lin analyzes how UXO disproportionately contaminates Cambodia's most fertile soils, rendering modern agricultural innovations like tractors and water pumps too dangerous to adopt. Drawing on interviews with farmers along the Cambodia-Vietnam border, she illustrates how invisible risks beneath the surface constrain economic decisions. This chapter's s