Customer Reviews

MASH: An Army Surgeon in Korea

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is not about the T.V. show M*A*S*H. But the tv show did get many of its episodes from this book. From arterial transplants to make shift clamps these Doctors opened many new doors to the medical world. Chapter 6 "In the O.R." is pretty gruesome. Details of intestinal wounds abdominal wounds and pretty much everything a war could destroy on a body.

But its not all blood and guts. D.R. Apel talks of the korean's who helped around the camp. The use of the white rocks in the compund. Plus his first day at the MASH was spent on his feet for 72 hrs. operating. Amazing.

I would have ggave the book a five star rating but there was a section on a paper the D.R. wrote on arteral repair which IMO took away from the book. It might have worked better at the end of the book.

Nice pictures of procedures and Korea. This book is a must for people who like the TV show and would really like to see what went on in a real MASH outfit during the real Korean war.

Dr. Appell's book "M. A. S. H.: An Army Surgeon in Korea" is an excellent tribute to the men and women of the Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals by a veteran surgeon of the 8076TH M . A. S. H. unit. My only complaint is that the book was not a little longer. For any fan of the movie or t. v. series this book is a must-read. Dr. Appell (who was a consultant for the series), tells us what life was really like in a M. A. S. H. unit. The series took some liberties with actual events, but its overall portrayal was fairly accurate-though the series lasted 10 years compared to the three years of the Korean War itself, and the average length of stay for surgeons in a M. A. S. H. was about 8 months. Dr. Appell has written a very interesting book.

It's clear that the author is a doctor and not a writer. The book cries out for editing; writing errors and organizational issues permeate the book. That said, after I got about halfway through these things stopped bothering me. The story made up for it. The reality of the MASH is much more interesting than what's portrayed on the screen. It gave me a new respect for military medicine. If you can make it through the starting chapters it's a great read.

I finally ordered Dr. Apel's book years after it first came out the day after my aunt's military funeral. When the book was first published, the author had sent her a copy. There's a story about her on p. 105 and pictures on the cover and on pp. 106 and 99, LT. Marilyn Brown. She recommended the book highly, but I'd never managed to read it when I'd found it by inter-library loan or when I'd borrowed Dad's copy. But after Marilyn's funeral I sent for my own copy and read it.

For years she had shared her adventures, her fear, her funny stories, her painful PTSD memories. I had always known MASH, even before the TV show. Marilyn lived it, both the laughter and the tears. Through her, I got it second-hand. Through this book many others can come to understand what these men and women, these ordinary heroes, accomplished and suffered as they set the standard for battlefield medicine in the modern era.

I highly recommend this book and would even if I didn't have a personal connection to it. The reader is presented with an historical angle rarely seen, with insight into the staffs' daily lives, with events and anecdotes that educate, inspire and entertain-- some of which made their way into MASH scripts for TV. The story about everyone at the 8076 coloring their hair with henna was turned into everyone at the 4077 bleaching their hair blonde while Hot Lips was on leave in Tokyo.
Look for other parallels. You'll find them. Enjoy.

Kim Lawrence

From the literary side, this work is a little rough around the edges. From the historical side, I am glad to finally find some firsthand information about the 8076 MASH. I wish there were more stories about the MASH units and the contributions they made during the forgotten war. My dad was in the 8076, after Dr. Apel served there, but unfortunately he never talked about his time in the Korea. This book helped fill that gap and will always remain in my library.

All i can say is at the end of this book you will be speachless, this a a timless classic that inspired a spawing fox tv series that is still shown today. I Don't want to give any of the book away so i wont tell you alot, but this book is a very highly recomennded book for those who loved the series and loved the movie (also found on amazon.com). "One of my favorites ever! "