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On Desperate Ground : The Epic Story of Chosin Reservoir--The Greatest Battle of the Korean War by Hampton Sides (2019, Trade Paperback)
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The Chinese, he said with near certainty, would not intervene in the war. As he was speaking, 300,000 Red Chinese soldiers began secretly crossing the Manchurian border. Faced with probable annihilation, and temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero, the surrounded, and hugely outnumbered, Marines fought through the enemy forces with ferocity, ingenuity, and nearly unimaginable courage as they marched their way to the sea.
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherKnopf Doubleday Publishing Group
ISBN-101101971215
ISBN-139781101971215
eBay Product ID (ePID)2309486911
Product Key Features
Book TitleOn Desperate Ground : the Epic Story of Chosin Reservoir--The Greatest Battle of the Korean War
Number of Pages432 Pages
LanguageEnglish
Publication Year2019
TopicMilitary Science, Military / Korean War, Military / United States, Asia / Korea
IllustratorYes
GenreTechnology & Engineering, History
AuthorHampton Sides
FormatTrade Paperback
Dimensions
Item Height0.9 in
Item Weight14.4 Oz
Item Length8 in
Item Width5.2 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
LCCN2018-010543
Reviews"Superb...a masterpiece of thorough research, deft pacing and arresting detail...Sides shows how brave Marines -- officers and grunts -- innovated, organized and blasted their way out of the trap their fabulously famous boss had helped set. This war story -- the fight to break out of a frozen hell near the Chosin Reservoir -- has been told many times before. But Sides tells it exceedingly well, with fresh research, gritty scenes and cinematic sweep." -- Washington Post "To this pantheon [of the best books on the Korean War] we can now add Hampton Sides' On Desperate Ground , which hits all the right notes...It's a story Marines are rightly proud of and one that should be of interest to anyone who wants to know more about the remains that just returned home from Korea, and why those men deserve to be remembered." -- Wall St. Journal Gripping...Master storyteller Hampton Sides, specializes in captivating readers with his trademark moment-by-moment accounts...Sides captures the big personalities who run things...[and] also immerses readers in vivid accounts of horrific battles and an infamous "attack in reverse." -- Christian Science Monitor "Excellent... On Desperate Ground is a first-rate work of military history, and its combat narratives are rich with individual stories of danger, bravery, loss, survival and wrenching poignancy." --Dallas Morning News "Sides' brilliant reporting and crisp storytelling provides a backdrop for events on the world stage almost 70 years later...It's an epic worthy of Homer...In their will to survive the Americans are just as crafty as their Greek forebears." -- Santa Fe New Mexican "Hampton Sides's On Desperate Ground is a heart-pounding, fiercely written account of the brutal Chosin Reservoir Campaign during the Korean War. Every page pulsates with drama. Sides, an American master of nonfiction, has written one of the finest battle books ever." --Douglas Brinkley, New York Times bestselling author of Rightful Heritage and The Wilderness Warrior " On Desperate Ground is first-rate narrative history. Hampton Sides' characters are richly drawn, his background history engrossing, and his battle scenes bone-chillingly realistic--a great read." --Daniel James Brown, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Boys in the Boat "On Desperate Ground is a masterpiece of war history, a sweeping and powerfully drawn epic of the Korean War and its mightiest battle. The astonishing heroism, resourcefulness, and grit of the Marines trapped at Chosin Reservoir boggles the mind, and Hampton Sides's telling of the story largely through the voices of those who fought (including Koreans) makes for a spellbinding and moving narrative. One of the most harrowing accounts of war I have ever read, this book is destined to become a classic." --Douglas Preston, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lost City of the Monkey God "What a book! Through moment-by-moment, intensely-researched details, On Desperate Ground utterly immerses the reader in this harrowing battle. Hampton Sides gives us a better understanding of the history behind current U.S. relations with Korea and China while offering a series of captivating profiles in human courage--an absolutely riveting read." --Anthony Doerr, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of All the Light We Cannot See
Dewey Edition23
Dewey Decimal951.904/242
SynopsisFrom the New York Times bestselling author of Blood and Thunder and Ghost Soldiers , a chronicle of the extraordinary feats of heroism by Marines called on to do the impossible during the greatest battle of the Korean War. "Superb ... A masterpiece of thorough research, deft pacing and arresting detail...This war story--the fight to break out of a frozen hell near the Chosin Reservoir--has been told many times before. But Sides tells it exceedingly well, with fresh research, gritty scenes and cinematic sweep." -- The Washington Post On October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of UN troops in Korea, convinced President Harry Truman that the Communist forces of Kim Il-sung would be utterly defeated by Thanksgiving. The Chinese, he said with near certainty, would not intervene in the war. As he was speaking, 300,000 Red Chinese soldiers began secretly crossing the Manchurian border. Led by some 20,000 men of the First Marine Division, the Americans moved deep into the snowy mountains of North Korea, toward the trap Mao had set for the vainglorious MacArthur along the frozen shores of the Chosin Reservoir. What followed was one of the most heroic--and harrowing--operations in American military history, and one of the classic battles of all time. Faced with probable annihilation, and temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero, the surrounded, and hugely outnumbered, Marines fought through the enemy forces with ferocity, ingenuity, and nearly unimaginable courage as they marched their way to the sea. Hampton Sides' superb account of this epic clash relies on years of archival research, unpublished letters, declassified documents, and interviews with scores of Marines and Koreans who survived the siege. While expertly detailing the follies of the American leaders, On Desperate Ground is an immediate, grunt's-eye view of history, enthralling in its narrative pace and powerful in its portrayal of what ordinary men are capable of in the most extreme circumstances. Hampton Sides has been hailed by critics as one of the best nonfiction writers of his generation. As the Miami Herald wrote, "Sides has a novelist's eye for the propulsive elements that lend momentum and dramatic pace to the best nonfiction narratives.", On October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur, supreme commander of U.N. troops in Korea, convinced President Truman that the Korean Co mmunist forces would be utterly defeated by Thanksgiving and that the Chinese would not intervene in the war. Unbeknownst to him, 300,000 Red Chinese were crossing the border into Korea, as he ordered some 20,000 men of the First Marine Division to lead American troops deep into the snowy mountains of North Korea and straight into a trap along the frozen shores of the Chosin Reservoir. What followed was one of the most heroic-and harrowing-operations in American military history and one of the classic battles of all time. Faced with probable annihilation and temperatures plunging to twenty degrees below zero, the surrounded and hugely outnumbered Marines and other U.N. troops fought through the enemy forces with ferocity, ingenuity, and nearly unimaginable courage as they marched their way to the sea. Book jacket., "Superb...A masterpiece of thorough research, deft pacing and arresting detail...This war story -- the fight to break out of a frozen hell near the Chosin Reservoir -- has been told many times before. But Sides tells it exceedingly well, with fresh research, gritty scenes and cinematic sweep."-- Washington Post From the New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Soldiers and In the Kingdom of Ice , a chronicle of the extraordinary feats of heroism by Marines called on to do the impossible during the greatest battle of the Korean War On October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of UN troops in Korea, convinced President Harry Truman that the Communist forces of Kim Il-sung would be utterly defeated by Thanksgiving. The Chinese, he said with near certainty, would not intervene in the war. As he was speaking, 300,000 Red Chinese soldiers began secretly crossing the Manchurian border. Led by some 20,000 men of the First Marine Division, the Americans moved deep into the snowy mountains of North Korea, toward the trap Mao had set for the vainglorious MacArthur along the frozen shores of the Chosin Reservoir. What followed was one of the most heroic--and harrowing--operations in American military history, and one of the classic battles of all time. Faced with probable annihilation, and temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero, the surrounded, and hugely outnumbered, Marines fought through the enemy forces with ferocity, ingenuity, and nearly unimaginable courage as they marched their way to the sea. Hampton Sides' superb account of this epic clash relies on years of archival research, unpublished letters, declassified documents, and interviews with scores of Marines and Koreans who survived the siege. While expertly detailing the follies of the American leaders, On Desperate Ground is an immediate, grunt's-eye view of history, enthralling in its narrative pace and powerful in its portrayal of what ordinary men are capable of in the most extreme circumstances. Hampton Sides has been hailed by critics as one of the best nonfiction writers of his generation. As the Miami Herald wrote, "Sides has a novelist's eye for the propulsive elements that lend momentum and dramatic pace to the best nonfiction narratives."
LC Classification NumberDS918.2.C35S53 2018
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Ratings and reviews
Most relevant reviews
- 06 Apr, 2020
Good read for a Sides fan
Excellent book on a little studied war. Hampton Sides does thorough research and writes in the engrossing style of Rick Atkinson. The book describes the horrors of fighting in the frozen Chosin so as to put the reader in the shoes of the grunts. He also exposes the buffoon MacArthur as the fool he was. I highly recommend the book along with his "Ghost Soldiers" and "Blood and Thunder" My only con is that there are not enough maps, but I got an old National Geographic Map of Korea to help me see the big picture.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 14 Dec, 2021
Well, imagine being a marine on foreign ground in freezing conditions. Combine that with onslaughts by communist Chinese forces. Mercy.
Incredible story of combat survival in horrible conditions. A grand fighting retreat. Makes me proud to be a Marine. Great leadership at all levels. A very compelling story.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 24 May, 2023
Great book
Awesome book about this forgotten war and what our troops went through in that war. Everyone should read this book to understand what our men accomplished and how we made it possible for South Korea to become what it is today. When you think your having a bad day you should think about these men at "The Battle at the Chosin Reservoir".Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 07 Apr, 2024
A story of sacrifice, courage and dedication in one of our lesser written about battles. I must read for military history, buffs
A story of sacrifice, courage and dedication in one of our lesser written about battles. I must read for military history, buffsVerified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 10 Jun, 2024
Great book.
Great book.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
