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, "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 "No one writes war and extreme life-and-death tales as vividly and authentically as Hampton Sides. As a veteran of the 1st Marine Division, I found his new book about one of the most desperate battles in American history to be riveting and beautifully told. Sides gets it all right, from the heroism of the Marines trapped in the frozen mountains to the chess moves of the generals and politicians who put them there. An incredible page-turner of a book, a must-read." --William Broyles Jr, acclaimed screenwriter of Jarhead, Apollo 13, Flags of Our Fathers, and Cast Away "Sides has done incredible work: the action is cinematic, with the detailed insights and character development of a novel. And it is all real....A masterpiece of storytelling about a war that is often given short shrift in American history. Readers will feel the fierce cold, the constant threat of death, and the desperation of being trapped and under siege felt by the U.S. Marines in Sides' vivid and invaluable history." -- Booklist (starred review) "A splendid account... Abundant heroism, vivid battle scenes, and nuanced treatment of the judicious, determined leadership of General Smith. Sides's lucid assessment of the battles, leadership, politics, and key figures at the turning point of the war show how the First Marine Division's commanders and fighting men staved off a nearly unprecedented military debacle." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review), "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, "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 "No one writes war and extreme life-and-death tales as vividly and authentically as Hampton Sides. As a veteran of the 1st Marine Division, I found his new book about one of the most desperate battles in American history to be riveting and beautifully told. Sides gets it all right, from the heroism of the Marines trapped in the frozen mountains to the chess moves of the generals and politicians who put them there. An incredible page-turner of a book, a must-read." --William Broyles Jr, acclaimed screenwriter of Jarhead, Apollo 13, Flags of Our Fathers, and Cast Away
