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The Korean War: The West Confronts Communism Hardcover – Bargain Price, May 22, 2000

4.2 out of 5 stars 11 customer reviews

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Hardcover, Bargain Price, May 22, 2000
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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 397 pages
  • Publisher: Overlook Hardcover (May 22, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1585670359
  • ASIN: B006Z39EIU
  • Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.6 x 9.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,707,063 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

Format: Hardcover
A good introductory text to the Korean War. This book will be especially interesting for American readers (like me,) as he focuses on the experience of the Commonwealth and other non-US/S. Korean forces. He also takes an even-handed look at the American military and government in the late forties/early fifties. The poor decision-making and ideology driven policy is well described. When it comes to the Commonwealth side, he is tends to wear rose colored glasses. To be fair he also praises US elite units as well.
I liked the way he blended international relations, battle description and domestic political action (in many countries) into a cohesive narrative. Some familiarity with Cold War history is helpful.
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Format: Paperback
In this book, Korean War veteran and British scholar Michael Hickey provides an interesting narrative of that conflict. Hickey served in a supply unit, and apparently did not see any combat, but this thoroughly researched narrative has no shortage of action. But be prepared for a decidedly British account of the war. Much of the book describes the exploits of the Commonwealth Division, consisting of units from Britain, Australia, Canada, and elsewhere. Meanwhile, purely American events in the war, such as the critical Inchon landings, are merely glossed over.

Hickey should not be blamed for focusing on the UK perspective of the war. Commonwealth forces made a relatively small but nonetheless important contribution to the UN effort in Korea, and their story deserves to be told. But the title of the book is misleading. "The Korean War: The West Confronts Communism" implies a broad and balanced overview of the conflict, which this book clearly is not. One wonders if the subtitle was concocted by the publisher in order to attract a larger audience.

As is too often the case in military books, there is a dearth of quality maps. The reader struggles to follow the action as it rapidly moves up and down the Korean peninsula. A lesser complaint would be Hickey's fondness for praising the bravery and efficiency of the British soldier, particularly at the expense of the American fighting man. Undoubtedly, many of the comparisons are accurate, especially when speaking of the neglected post-war U.S. Army of 1950, but Hickey indulges in this personal pleasure far too often. He does compliment the U.S. Marines and certain army units repeatedly, sometimes even lavishing them with the ultimate compliment: saying that they could be considered equals of the British troops.
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Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
My primary interest is in the history and current affairs of the DPR Korea. More as a hobby than anything else. What fascinates me however, is the series of blunders the US government made in prosecuting the war. The Pentagon and the CIA were dead certain the Chinese would not enter the war - right up until the moment the PLA came storming across the Yalu. If the US had been satisfied with pushing the north Korea army back across the DMZ - and stopped there - that would've made sense. But the US was going to take the North, and hand it over to the South. Both Mao and Stalin weren't too keen on US troops on their borders so they reacted in a predictable manner. Predictable that is, to anyone not associated with the Pentagon, the State Department, and the CIA.
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Format: Paperback
This is a comprehensive and competent account of the Korean War, written by someone who personally experienced it. It tells the story of the first major military confrontation between the Communist bloc and the Western alliance. The series of explosive encounters between the North and the South Koreans, the Americans and the Chinese, and the myriad other groups involved is rendered in commendable detail. Military history buffs would be treated to descriptions of the minutiae of almost every battle - details that Hickey has meticulously extracted from a combination of declassified official records, regimental archives and diaries and interviews.

One of the great strengths of the book is its ability to switch convincingly between power politics and frontline action; between the view from the corridors of power and that of the man on the ground. I found myself alternately enthralled by the vivid portraits of military supremos like General McArthur and sickened by just as vivid depictions of death and brutality in the trenches.

Hickey also brings new depth to traditional accounts of the war by setting in context the contributions of other nations, besides the US, that answered the UN call to military involvement and coalition against the Communists. More specifically, he focuses on the contributions of the `old' Commonwealth: Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and India. In other accounts, their contributions are usually obscured by the role of the Americans. Here, their heroics and their idiosyncrasies are on full display.

All this being said, Hickey's `Korean War' lacks that extra spark that makes a book a truly great read. It lets itself down in terms of style.
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Format: Hardcover
Hickey has written a nice book about the Korean War (where he too part himself) and his description of battles, heroic actions and important decision making are very good indeed. The problem is that he gives heavy emphasis on the British (and Comonwealth) side of the war, spending too many pages to analyze the battles of these troops and he has little knowledge for the ¨other side of the hill¨. The maps are very few and general in nature and in many cases the reader will have a problem to follow the action. Some chapters are especially interesting, like that about the living conditions in the front lines, the commando and partisan operations, the air war and the highly informative appendices. I wish Mr Hickey had adopted a more balanced account of the war, presenting also the strategy, logistics and tactics of the communist side.
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