Recent books

Without a Country, I Wouldn't Exist

Paik Sun-yup; The Army: 512 pp., 25,000 won

An array of books is out to mark the 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War (1950-1953). One of the most eye-catching is an extensive memoir by Paik Sun-yup, the nation's first Army general. Paik, 90, a native of Gangseo in South Pyeongan Province, North Korea, was the commander of Korea's first Army Division when the war broke out. Paik describes almost immediately from the start of the book about how sudden hostilities commenced and how quickly they spread to devastate the forces on the southern half of the Korean peninsula.

Paik's writing is standard, almost dry, but he offers a tactical view. He recounts how unprepared South Korea was at that time, when its forces didn't possess a single tank, didn't have the right uniforms and sometimes not even the will to face off the voracious enemy that North Korean and later Chinese soldiers were. He recounts one fight on Aug. 21 in the first months of the war; he received an angry call from American forces that South Korean soldiers of the 11th Regiment were retreating. Paik had to hurriedly go to the site and lead by example, shouting ``Shoot me if I retreat." Also he details the critical fight at Dabudong, near the Nakdong River.

The chapters cover the stages of the war; how the Korean armed forces came into being, working with the American forces; then-President Syngman Rhee; and cease-fire talks. Some of the stories were formerly carried on the series by the general in the Korean vernacular the JoongAng Ilbo. Overall, the book offers informative reading as Korea ― richer and more confident six decades later ― looks back to the tragic war.

-Kim Ji-soo