Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to the Korean Conflict (Alpha Bravo Delta Guides) [Mass Market Paperback]

Thomas Gordon Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 7, 2004 | Series: Alpha Bravo Delta Guides

A comprehensive overview of Korea’s troubled past.

Put the headlines in context with this comprehensive, yet easy-to-follow overview of Korea’s social, political, and military evolution. From its early history as a Hermit Kingdom, to the brutal Korean War, to the current international crisis over nuclear arms, Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to the Korean Conflict takes readers through all the background essential to understanding today’s complex state of affairs.

• Explores the Korean War, America’s first "limited" war
• Includes stunning photos of battle and historic events
• Features nine separate appendixes of historic documents relating to the Korean conflict
• Foreword by internationally renowned expert Dr. C. Kenneth Quinones, a retired diplomat to Korea

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

W. Thomas Smith Jr. is a former Marine Corps infantry leader, paratrooper, and shipboard nuclear-security and counter-terrorist instructor. While with the Marines, he traveled throughout the globe and participated in a major allied forces military exercise in the Republic of South Korea. He is the author of Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to 20th-Century American Battles and Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to American Airborne Forces.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Alpha; PF edition (September 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592572138
• ISBN-13: 978-1592572137
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,053,824 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timely and eye opening exploration of the "Forgotten War", September 8, 2011

By 

Thomas A. Fenton (Walton, Kentucky, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to the Korean Conflict (Alpha Bravo Delta Guides) (Paperback)

Let me say first to eliminate confusion that Amazon's listing is incorrect. The author is not Thomas Gordon Smith. I was unable to find any author by that name. As the rest of the information states, this excellent, enlightening, and a bit frightening resource was written by W. Thomas Smith, Jr.

At first, I was not sure I would be overwhelmed with interest in the subject of a war fought during my lifetime and rarely mentioned. I am a Vietnam veteran and have focused my reading on events in American history prior to my lifetime. This book sat on my shelf for a couple of years waiting for me to get around to it. However, I was quickly captivated by Smith's presentation. Beginning with a brief but satisfactorily complete survey of the past five or so thousand years of Korean history, the reader is brought up to date into the 21st century. Published in 2004, Smith's work brings us into the middle of George W. Bush's presidency. This book's timeliness is fascinating to me, especially since this week (3 days, in fact) finds Americans and the world remembering the 10th anniversary of the destruction of the World Trade Towers on September 11, 2001. Whether you find yourself agreeing with President Bush's response to North Korea, and, for that matter, with President Truman's handling of the conflict itself is something no one can predict. I am not sure I even know now whether I agree with decisions that were made or not. History does not usually reveal the correctness or incorrectness of decisions for generations after the events are done. What I DO know is that thanks to his little book, 304 pages long, Smith has given me more to think about than I ever imagined. I am both frightened and comforted by what I have read.

Smith is a military man himself, so he knows his subject, and presents his information confidently, competently, and in a very readable way. Again, I was captivated from the first pages. Although I am sure there are many more things he could have included in his story, I am very satisfied and anxious to read more. There is an old saying that the way for a cook to win rave reviews about their cooking is to leave the diners wanting more. This W. Thomas Smith, Jr. has done, and for that reason along with style and many other things, I highly recommend "...the Korean Conflict" and give it:

Five stars!