Customer Reviews

Decisive Battles of the Korean War: An Infantry Company Commander's View of the War's Most Critical Engagements

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In Vietnam, we often spoke of seeing the "wolf" while Civil War veterans saw the "elephant". While the canine and pachyderm can't fully describe combat, they symbolize the enigmatic aspect of it. Anyone who has been in combat can't describe it and neither can those who haven't been in combat understand it. Sherman Pratt's book comes closest to bridging that gap between understanding and explaining the unexplainable than any book I have read.

The Korean War was a cold, violent, physically demanding war for both sides. Pratt's thesis is that certain battles were watershed events that shaped the outcome of the war. Pratt's description of life on the front lines is accurate and gives the layman an idea of what it was like to fight the Chinese human wave attacks.

After serving in WWII in Africa and Europe, Pratt reported to the famed 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division and was told he could kick up his heels in a staff job. He volunteered to take a rifle company from the Naktong River line to North Korea and back south after the Chinese intervention.

I can find little fault with the book other than some typographical errors and with some illustrations. The photographs are excellent and while they are obviously snapshots, they depict war as it was in 1951. I felt some battles were not told in sufficient detail such as the Twin Tunnels battle but Pratt is obviously keeping with his theme of Decisive Battles of the Korean War.

Pratt has strong opinions about his fellow officers and is most charitable with his superiors who made grievous errors.

I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to know the infantryman's view of combat.