Review of “I Was There,” by Ken Jones

 Review of

“I Was There,” by Ken Jones

Four out of five stars

Soft-core pro-war propaganda.

 The war in Korea has often been called “America’s Forgotten War.” President Harry Truman referred to it as a “police action,” which was strange for an event that cost nearly 3 million civilian deaths and over 30,000 American killed. Almost 2 million Americans served in Korea. At the time, many people in the United States preferred to simply put the war out of their minds as they went about adjusting to the new world of television and the creation of the suburbs.

 Ken Jones was a war correspondent that spent a significant amount of time on the front lines of Korea, often carrying a weapon. This book is a collection of his interviews with American fighting men operating on the front lines. Their descriptions of the action are truthful, although sometimes presented with a livelier tone than was actually used. Men talk about stepping on a land mine or watching their buddies destroyed with a light-heartedness that was not likely to be present.

Written in 1953, the year the armistice was signed, this book is designed to both report on the war and provide some reassurance to the American public that the American fighting man was tough, dedicated and willing to fight until victory is achieved. Consider it soft-core pro-war propaganda.

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