Forgotten War

This book on the Korean War is very complete and very detailed. The book gets down to the battalion level, getting into the battles, the cold, the terror, the heroism and the mistakes. It even touches on the treatment of the black soldiers within the American units. The only problem a reader might have is the amount of details. It is 1136 pages long, the first 976 pages cover the war, the last hundred or so covering sources and notes.While there are few pictures, each one is powerful, no doubt carefully selected.

This book reflects a colossal effort at detailing virtually a day by day and unit by unit account of the Korean conflict. If you need to know what happened in Korea at a particular time or place or to a particular military unit or commander, this book will tell you. Although well written and organized, I personally was bothered by the author's emphasis on the command level personalities and actions. This book could more accurately be titled 'A History of West Point Graduates and Their Careers in Relation to the Korean Conflict'. Reading this book could leave the impression that there were no enlisted men, non-commissioned officers or field grade officers involved in the war. Excepting mention of Medal of Honor recipients during the conflict, there is very little use of personal accounts or activities of participants below the rank of colonel. The author's ritual of calculating average ages of commanders during every command change was at first irrelevant and then became irritating. I also would have appreciated inclusion of a little more contextural information along with the battle outlines. Despite an enormous amount of command and maneuver information, very little information is included on weapons systems, civilian populations, and the opponent forces and strategy in North Korea, China, and the Soviet Union.

While very long and very detailed, Blair proves himself by not leaving anything out. What is most impressive about this book is how Blair seamlessly transitions from discussions within the National Command Authority to battalion and brigade-level combat. It took me a few months to get through this one, but it was well worth the time. Superbly written for the lay historian.

Korea was a tragedy. What makes it such a great tragedy is that so many men died and suffered due to the incompetence and egos of men like Douglas McArthur who was rarely if ever under fire or understood the big picture what he was throwing men into. Yet it was a real success of sorts as the Koreans did want us --unlike Vietnam -- and we did succeed in keeping half of Korea as a free democratic (such as it is) country. Unlike Vietnam, we bothered to listen to those we were there to help and our objectives were highly compatible, definable and achievable. Precisely because they wanted to be free and not because of force of arms they were free. The will to be free was the real weapon, the force of arms was the means or one means to get there. This book gives a highly factual accurate riveting account of what was at stake in the world, for Korea, for us, for Japan, etc. and shows how important the actions of individuals - omissions (e.g., McArthur's weak G-2) and commissions (Matt Ridgway's real leadership of the men after McArthur's dismissal) can be to the outcome in history. The landing at Inchon was probably the luckiest landing in history and it made McArthur look good, but it was not the key to what eventually happened. Read on. You will be amazed how poor our intelligence was, how poorly equipped in the way of weaponry and clothing our men were. How nieve many of our commanders and McArthur was about the greatly limited ability to use tanks and heavy artillary (Korea is a rugged tough, mountainess country, not the rolling hills of WWII European mainland. Korea was perfect for ambushing and massacring larger forces. If you want the inspiring and heart wrenching truth of Korea told in a highly readable book, then this one is for you and all lovers of those who attempt to write accurate history (i.e., complete, factual renderings of the key parties, feelings, actions, and philosophies involved).

Clay Blair's examination of the Korean War is a masterful piece of political and military history. It documents America's early disgrace, valiant ressurection and eventual stalemate on the Korean peninsula. Despite the books rather imposing size, it reads incredibly well, and is a real page turner. Blair provides meaningful insight into the political and military events which shaped America's involvement in Korea, and how those events helped shape future American foriegn policy towards Eastern Asian nations. You will follow the 8th Army's trek from its shameful early intervention, to its race to the Yalu then back and forth across the 38th parallel. You will marvel at the Marine Corps' unbending will to fight with honor and courage, despite overwhelming odds. And you will learn how General Matthew Ridgway turned around the broken spirit of the 8th Army and molded into one the most formidable fighting forces in U.S. history. If you enjoy history and you want to learn about America's involvement in Korea, then Clay Blair's book is a must read.