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VINE VOICEon November 10, 2012
The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War is a very good read and serves as a good starting point for anyone interested in the Korean War. It is not a complete history of the war as it is singularly focused on the bungled handling of the Korean War by General Douglas MacArthur and some of his subordinate commanders, most notably Ned Almond. Halberstam also neatly chronicles the errors of political leaders in the United States, North Korea, South Korea, China and the Soviet Union that led to the Korean War and continued it well past when the fighting became a useless stalemate.
Halberstam neatly chronicles events on the ground in Korea but frustratingly spends long chapters away from the battlefield discussing events in China. If you're looking strictly for a military history of the war this is not the book for you. Nor is it the book for you if you're looking for a balanced portrayal of General MacArthur, Ned Almond and MacArthur's intelligence officer Charles Willoughby. The way Halberstam tells this story MacArthur was not only incompetent but delusional as well and guys like Almond and Willoughby should have been court martialed and jailed for their incompetence. Halberstam does support each portrayal with a long litany of facts and incidents, but one does kind of get a feeling that, like all good writers, in order to "hook" a reader in to a story he needed a villain and he found several. After MacArthur's recall by President Truman the book moves quickly through the rest of the war.
The end of the book is, in my opinion, a disaster. It felt like Halberstam didn't know where to end it so he just kept writing. The reader is treated to chapters on the two Koreas since the Korean War and chapters on Kennedy, Johnson and Vietnam that seem out of place. Halberstam should have cut those chapters out and ended with the chapter that discusses the experience since the war of some of the veterans Halberstam interviewed for the book. The quotes by veterans who lived through each battle detailed by Halberstam are what really make this book worth reading and the fate of the surviving veterans is quite interesting.
This is a good starting point to get interested in the Korean War but it should not be treated as a good general overall history of the war.
Halberstam neatly chronicles events on the ground in Korea but frustratingly spends long chapters away from the battlefield discussing events in China. If you're looking strictly for a military history of the war this is not the book for you. Nor is it the book for you if you're looking for a balanced portrayal of General MacArthur, Ned Almond and MacArthur's intelligence officer Charles Willoughby. The way Halberstam tells this story MacArthur was not only incompetent but delusional as well and guys like Almond and Willoughby should have been court martialed and jailed for their incompetence. Halberstam does support each portrayal with a long litany of facts and incidents, but one does kind of get a feeling that, like all good writers, in order to "hook" a reader in to a story he needed a villain and he found several. After MacArthur's recall by President Truman the book moves quickly through the rest of the war.
The end of the book is, in my opinion, a disaster. It felt like Halberstam didn't know where to end it so he just kept writing. The reader is treated to chapters on the two Koreas since the Korean War and chapters on Kennedy, Johnson and Vietnam that seem out of place. Halberstam should have cut those chapters out and ended with the chapter that discusses the experience since the war of some of the veterans Halberstam interviewed for the book. The quotes by veterans who lived through each battle detailed by Halberstam are what really make this book worth reading and the fate of the surviving veterans is quite interesting.
This is a good starting point to get interested in the Korean War but it should not be treated as a good general overall history of the war.
on February 21, 2016
There are darned few books on the Korean War. Oddly, this book is more about the politics in and around the war than the tactical pursuit of the war itself, and I found that information quite enlightening. As a child born after said war, at the tag end of the 50s, I had always wondered about the 'Unleash Chiang Kai-Shek' phrase, and the term 'old China hands;' this book explains both! The book's coverage of the actual war is only so-so after the first wave of repelling the Chinese, but its coverage of the political situation is quite good. Spoiler alert/warning: If you like, or worse, still worship Dougie MacArthur, do not read this book, which exposes him in quite uncomplimentary ways.
on November 22, 2016
A very factual account of a ignored portion of American History. If nothing else is learned, it is that having civilian control of the military with a democratically elected President is essential to maintaining the great American experiment. It is truly heart renching to learn about the terrible conditions and poor leadership our troops experienced in the Korean conflct. This book is an excellent look back at very pivotal period in American history. It can be said that President Truman might have saved our Republic from military rule.
on October 15, 2013
This is a post World War ll story involving Communist North Korea, Catholic South Korea, Communist China, France and the U.S. Essentially it was a battle for domination of the former French Indo China and the defeat of France and America. The country and its very difficult terrain and weather was an important part of an ugly loss. The loss was imposed by multiple Infantry Divisions of China and a totally misjudged North Korean Army on hap-hazard, quickly assembled piecemeal units of U.S. Army and Marine Corps personnel. General MacArthur, operating from a Command Post based in Tokyo Japan, insisted on replacing the totally outclassed French Army with U.S. military units against the highly trained Communist troops. This alone...was one of the major errors of the history of warfare on planet earth. MacArthur scored with the First Marine Division by invading Inchon by sea. Other than Inchon, sadly, it was one botched battle after another for the stubborn and arrogant behavior of our General. President Truman, with no other
choice fired MacArthur. The U.S. Marine Corps waged a stunning battle after being surrounded at the Chosin Reservoir by multiple
Chinese Divisions and lost hundreds of troops to the freezing weather. The Marines finally marched to Hungnam were evacuated byships. Depending on a few remnant WW ll troops the U.S. Army was repeatedly badly damaged before peace was achieved.
choice fired MacArthur. The U.S. Marine Corps waged a stunning battle after being surrounded at the Chosin Reservoir by multiple
Chinese Divisions and lost hundreds of troops to the freezing weather. The Marines finally marched to Hungnam were evacuated byships. Depending on a few remnant WW ll troops the U.S. Army was repeatedly badly damaged before peace was achieved.
on October 10, 2016
A fascinating story of the Korean War. This book has lots of stories about the generals, the battles and their soldiers as the US fights the North Koreans and the Chinese Communists in the Korean Peninsula in the early 1950's. It is very a detailed saga, describing the bravery of the men, and their victories, as well as the mistakes made by commanding officers. It exposes the over confidence of General MacArthur (a famous WWII hero) as he manages the war from his base in Tokyo, and his refusal to belief his enemies can fight.
on May 4, 2014
For a time and war that has been relatively lost in our history - this was a terrific book. I found this to be as much a book about leadership as I did about military and social history. The author does a great job of casting the Korean War in the light of the times, political and military leadership that led us not only into the conflict but also why. He provides a great insights to Mao, Stalin, Rhee, Kim, Truman as well as many of the political supporting cast of the times. He also does a very thorough job of describing the politics of the time in the US, China, both North & South Korea and to a lesser extent Russia. There is a very enlightening assessment of the generals involved on both sides - with a well researched and described review of MacArthur, Ridgeway, Walker and others. Finally - he does a great job of describing the human components of the battles and war from the front line perspective of the soldiers and marines who fought the battles. I think this is an important book of the times.
on September 20, 2016
An unforgettable masterpiece of "the forgotten war." A finely detailed filigree of historical narrative infused with an analytic insight as to cause and consequence that is both probative and poignant, leaving an indelible impression even on those readers already steeped in the subject. This posthumously published work is a testament to Halberstam's gift for writing that breathes life into this remembrance of those who gave part or all of theirs in that faraway and frigid conflict that remains so relevant today.
on March 14, 2016
This book shows the cowardly end of General Douglas MacArthur's career. Born in 1943 I was aware of this "Police Action" taking place. I had a cousin who fought in Korea and when he came back he was never the same man; now I know why. How can an experienced officer expect to run a war from another country, surrounded by a group of officers who were yes men, and a West Point graduate at that. He never knew the truth of what was going on and never wanted any thing but his truth.
Being a U. S. Marine I am proud of how they were commanded and led in the battle of The Chosin Reservoir.
Being a U. S. Marine I am proud of how they were commanded and led in the battle of The Chosin Reservoir.
on March 23, 2014
Halberstam unflinchingly paints a disheartening picture of American hubris, arrogance and unpreparedness in a war with shifting enemies, unclear objectives, and top-down cluelessness. The culprit is oddly the hero of the Pacific campaign a decade earlier who "shall return." But an old, tired, decorated 70-year old General MacArthur never showed up for Korea. Our troops were sent in as neophytic freshmen, poorly armed, underclothed, and under led. And did we win? No! What we learned was how to lose in Viet Nam all over again. To fight a war on your enemy's land, fight his war how he fights it, learn and undermine his tactics, but not on a chalkboard at West Point. Halberstam aptly points out the heroes, the poseurs, and certainly the glaring lack of a ticker tape parade afterwards. The reader is advised to try to think of one since. Was the 38th parallel a victory?
This winter had no charm, just the freezing, heartbreaking loss of American lives engineered by commanders in tents with warm showers.
This winter had no charm, just the freezing, heartbreaking loss of American lives engineered by commanders in tents with warm showers.
