Their War for Korea: American, Asian, and European Combatants and Civilians, 1945-1953

It's cliche to call the Korean War "forgotten" in the United States. More accurately, it is misunderstood, and has been in the west for over fifty years. For the Koreans, the results of the war war are daily in front of them: not least in the continued division of the peninsula. English speaking readers need to understand the central fact that the Korean war was fought by Koreans for the destiny of Korea.Millett's groundbreaking effort brings this persepective into sharp focus. He calls the Korean war a "total" war (quoting Korean vets) and his first 14 thumbnail-sketch chapters bear out this interpretation. In terms of concentrated destruction in both time and space, Korea was as brutal a war as they come. Not much "limited" about it.The book itself is divided into three sections, entitled "the Koreans", "the Allies", and "the Americans". Chronologically, it defines the conflict as beginning shortly after Liberation, 15 August 1945 and it finishes with a chapter on the man who first signed the Armistice documents for the United Nations Command. Millett's emphasis on oral history combined with impressive documentary research makes this book required reading to understand the war beyond the limits of operations, strategy, or diplomatic policies. The human face of war is poignantly and sympathetically presented. There are heros, cowards, soldiers, civilians, men, and women in this great drama of conflict, ideology, and destiny.Their War for Korea promises to be the first of three volumes that will redefine the western view of the Korean War.