The Coldest Winter: America And The Korean War [First Edition, First Printing] Halberstam, David

As new condition black-and-white photographic boards contained in an as new condition non price-clipped transparent dust jacket. Includes List of Other Books by David Halberstam; Author Dedication; Glossary of Military Terms; List of Maps; Note on Military Map Symbols; Introduction; Epilogue; Author's Note; Acknowledgments; Afterword by Russell Baker; Notes; Bibliography and Index. Illustrated with maps. "I could hardly put this book down. Meticulously and thoroughly researched, it is splendidly compelling reading. The Coldest Winter is a superb conjoining of all the factors of this tragic war: the military tactics and strategy of both sides; the international diplomacy; the internal politics; the personalities of the various players. A great work." - Lt. Gen. Harold G. Moore (Ret.), co-author of We Were Soldiers Once.and Young "Halberstam considered The Coldest Winter his best work, the culmination of a career spent examining the defining issues of the last half century. Up until now, the Korean War has been the black hole of modern American history. The Coldest Winter changes that. Halberstam gives us a masterful narrative of the political decisions and miscalculations on both sides. He charts the disastrous path that led to the massive entry of Chinese forces near the Yalu River, and that caught Douglas MacArthur and his soldiers by surprise. He provides astonishingly vivid and nuanced portraits of all the major figures, including Truman and Eisenhower, Kim II Sung and Mao Zedong; and General MacArthur. At the same time, Halberstam provides us with his trademark highly evocative narrative journalism, chronicling the crucial battles with reportage of the highest order. At the heart of the book are the individual stories of the soldiers on the front lines who were left to deal with the consequences of the dangerous misjudgments and competing agendas of powerful men. We meet them, follow them, and see some of the most dreadful battles in history through their eyes. As ever, Halberstam was concerned with the extraordinary courage and resolve of people asked to bear an extraordinary burden. [The book] is contemporary history in its most literary and luminescent form, and it provides crucial perspective on the Vietnam War and the events of today. It is a book that Halberstam first decided to write more than thirty years ago and that took him nearly ten years to complete. It stands as a lasting testament to one of the greatest journalists and historians of our time, and to the fighting men whose heroism it chronicles." - from the inner front and rear jacket flaps.