![]() It is also an extraordinary window into the early bellicosity of the GOP - a trait we still have swirling around us even after Iraq. I was, or had forgotten just how despicable Rhee was and how much he contributed to the quagmire. Hastings is very clear about the lessons not learned and he is scrupulously fair when it comes to outlining what went wrong in Korea. However, the book is very good on outlining the way the Korean conflict set up Vietnam. So discussions about whether our not it was a good decision not to nuke China are terrifying. Also through no fault of the author the book is dated not only because he skips over the McArthur dismissal (because everyone knows about it) but also because he is writing during a period in which the Soviet Union still existed and previous to the Chinese adoption of the capitalist/communist hybrid. The action is not well blocked and we realize that things are being summarized to an extent that robs us a real understanding of what the experience was like. Hastings writes for those who are more familiar with military nomenclature and consequently some of the descriptions of battles are confusing. The book is fairly compressed however and feels rushed at times. The strength here is the inclusion of his interviews with 200 people including some Chinese, British soldiers and Korean non combatants. ![]() ![]() ![]() An extremely readable history of the conflict. ![]()
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