When the guns fell into uneasy silence along the 38th parallel ten years ago, the end of the war in Korea did not write the end of an era but merely marked a fork in the word the world is still traveling. Ranking in the minds of some as a skirmish in the roster of the major wars of history, actually this collision between the earth's two power blocs cost more than two million lives and showed clearly the extent of the chasm beside which men walk. Mr. Fehrenbach approaches hi dramatic, authoritative, and hard-hitting account of that near disastrous war from the angle of those who fought it. While he has drawn from such sources as official records, operations journals, histories, and newspapers, his book is based largely on the personal narratives of men who served in Korea-not the high commanders, but the men who served under them, the platoon leaders in charge of small units slugging across the bloody face of Korea from June 1950 to July 1953. One of the distinguishing aspects of the book, and one that makes for immense readability as well as comprehension is the author's ability to move in these pages very close to each company action, and then stand back and consider the overall scene and the strategic principles involved. From the first North Korean attack through the interminable negotiations at Panmunjom, each phase of the grueling war is covered.

Includes index.

pt. 1. Beginning: Seoul Saturday night. The crime of Marquis Ito. To make a war ... The plan of General Chae. Disaster. The U.N. cloak -- pt. 2. Battle: Task Force Smith. The late Company A. Taejon. Retreating. Perimeter. Fire brigade. Death on the Naktong. The turn iof the tide. Seoul recaptured. Revenge. The taste of triumph. In the never-never land. Kunu-ri. Into the Valley of Death. Terror by night. Changjin Reservoir. Chipyong-ni. Vae, Caesar. Proud legions. Gloster Hill. Death Valley. May massacre -- pt. 3. Blundering: Truce talks. Bloody Ridge. Heartbreak Ridge. Stalemate. behind the wire. Frustration. Koje-do. Twenty rolls of toilet paper, one quart of mercurochrome. Summer, winter, spring, and fall. The last spring. Cease-fire. Lessons.