Reading List

[foxholetom]

So I have three books on my "to buy" list for Korea. They are:

The Coldest Winter
Leadership in the Crucible

East of Chosin was on there, but I just found a cheap copy on e-bay and bought it. It is about 7th Infantry Divisions fight against Chinese encirclement on the east side of the resevoir, a fight the division nearly didn't survive.

Other books that I own, that are on my reading list are: The River and the Gauntlet, On Hallowed Ground, Pork Chop Hill, About Face, and South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu.

Post what you guys are reading about Korea.

[foxholetom]

"East of Chosin" should be interesting reading. I just read some stuff online about Task Force Faith. In most histories they get a footnote, about how they were destroyed by Chinese forces while the Marines fought their way out.

What is often overlooked is that they held out for four days, blocking the Chinese from taking the key airfield and base that the Marines retreated back to, and guarding the flank of the Marines. If Task Force faith hadn't held for those four days, the outcome of the overall battle could have been very different.

Another thing to come to light in relatively recent years, is the strength of the Chinese facing Task Force Faith: two complete Chinese divisions, and they suffered very heavy casualties (they did not reappear on the front lines until April 1951). In light of this new information, the navy awarded the task force the Navy Presidential Unit Citation.

Colonel Faith was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in attempting to break out of encirclement, and nine members were awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for their efforts.

[Woodard]

For anyone just getting into Korea I'd say "Voices from Korea" by Richard Peters and Xiaobing Li. It's an easy read that has mostly American stories with a few Chinese and Korean ones as well.

[foxholetom]

I'll have to check that out.

I did a little searching, the guy who wrote "East of Chosin", Roy Appleman, was an Army Historian, and wrote one of the CMH volumes on Korea (South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu). I just picked up "Disaster in Korea" about the attack on 8th Army by the Chinese, and I'm trying to find a cheap copy about "Escaping the Trap", the larger battle faced by X Corps in the winter of 1950.

[Woodard]

You should seriously see if you can find a library with interlibrary loan. You don't get to keep it, but you can get just about anything on there.

[foxholetom]

I like having my own copies. With a little patience I'm finding most of these titles for less than $10 including shipping on e-bay.

[Woodard]

Right now I'm reading "The river and the Gauntlet" by Marshall. Great book, although I find it ironic that around the time of the battle he published a book called "The Soldier's Load and the mobility of a nation". In this book he talks about troops being unnessicarily overloaded with ammunition and grenades, and how after action debriefing showed they usually used only a fraction of what they carried. So guess what happens to all the units in this book? They all run out of ammo and grenades, usually at critical moments.

[foxholetom]

Bren, I'm reading that one off and on too. I noticed the same thing. Like, the BAR gunner unloads on the Chinese position, then stops firing. "Why aren't you shooting at them?" "Oh, I'm out of ammo."

[Woodard]

My favorite was the platoon that was advancing up the slope NOT being engaged, when the Lt. told them to put supressing fire on the crest. When they got to the top they were all low on ammo and had to go back down the hill.

I don't hear much about mortars/arty firing illumination rounds, so I guess the're just blazing away into the dark. Of course they'd have to run out eventually.

[foxholetom]

I know in the cold the SCR batteries died quickly, and they probably hadn't strung wire.

I remember the part you're talking about, at the beginning of the book. Marshall also mentions a lot of guys not having helmets.
Its worth mentioning that a lot of SLA Marshall's work has been put into question by modern historians, especially "Men Against Fire".

[Woodard]

I had heard something about that, I was under the impression it had to do with the number of men he'd claimed to have interviewed being astronomically high, even with the staff he had. I will say that some of the stuff in Soldiers Load didn't quite make sense...

[foxholetom]

The biggest statistic people have challenged is that only 15% of men engaged actually shot back at the enemy.

[Woodard]

I'll be the first to admit that it doesn't sound very probable, I wonder if anyone else has done any serious work on the subject? I know the book "On killing" by Grossman talks a lot about new training and conditioning methods adopted after the war, but if I recall he takes Marshalls findings at face value. He does make a good point, however, when talking about the Civil war. With the firepower of the rifled musket troops in the open should have been wiped out quickly (The Prussians did a test where they hung a banner 6 foot tall and as long as a battalion front and had a regiment shoot at it for ten minutes. They completely shredded it.) Despite all this, you hear of units standing and firing for hours at each other. He talks about people firing high and other things to avoid killing anyone. Firing at nothing in particular seems much more believeable than simply not firing.

[foxholetom]

I just finished East of Chosin. Very good read about a dark chapter of the Korean War.

[John Abshire]

I am reading the Coldest Winter right now, and its a very good read...a lot of 1st hand accounts with good background information, a must read for this season.

The whole shooting and not shooting debate should be put to rest by all the accounts that speak of men shooting just to shoot, shooting at shadows, or bushes or whatever they think might be shooting at them. I read an account in a book about K Company of the 160th in the 1st ID about how they just shot in the direction that the person who shot 1st...so 1 guy would open up and the men would just shoot in that direction, it made them feel like they were in a "position of power" and gave them courage...the sound itself would make them feel a bit safer...I have read this in many 1st hand accounts...personally I think SLA Marshall is an idiot.

[foxholetom]

He's definitely off base on the shooting statistics in WW2, and some of his "padding" on his credentials is questionable, nonetheless, his contribution to the development of the modern army is undeniable, and some of his Korean War writings is certainly worth reading.

[kimchee]

I would highly recommend "The Last Parallel " by Martin Russ.

It is a first hand account of fighting after the lines had stabilized.

Kim

[pop401k]

I know most of you guys are doing Army, but the book: One Bugle, No Drums is a nice account of USMC reserves called up and fighting at the Chosin. Even talks about them looting parkas from a supply train. Read it years ago, but it's a really neat first person narrative...H&S, 7th Marines IIRC

[foxholetom]

Pop,
I have a copy of that on my stack of books to read about Korea. I have so far heard only good things.