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The Forgotten: A Novel of the Korean War

by Robert W. Mackay (Goodreads Author)

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Reading for the 2nd time

read in June 2024

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Reader said: " I was three years old at the start of the Korean war. If my Ottawa schooling was typical across Canada, not many Canadians of my vintage ever learned much about it. We got European and Canadian history, and we covered the two "Great Wars". And, of co I was three years old at the start of the Korean war. If my Ottawa schooling was typical across Canada, not many Canadians of my vintage ever learned much about it. We got European and Canadian history, and we covered the two "Great Wars". And, of course, I lived through the Vietnam War during my teens. But the Korean war, as far as I know, was never mentioned. For me, it has always been vague, somewhat mitigated by TV's MASH, and I don't think I knew, or certainly didn't appreciate, that Canadians were involved in it at all.

That is why Bob Mackay's book is so significant. If the title is a recognition of my Canadian ignorance, then it will go a long way in filling such an important knowledge gap. I use the word "if" because the Platoon of Canadian soldiers that we become intimately familiar with as we follow their ordeal through the course of the war, were themselves almost an afterthought in the military hierarchy of the time. As a "tag along" to the larger and "more important" platoons, they might well have been forgotten by the army itself, and perhaps the title has a two-fold purpose.

The book is presented as a novel. However, many of the characters are real people, and the author has presented biographical summaries of their lives at the book's end, adding to its enjoyment and historical value. I felt I was inside a docudrama as I followed the account of the harrowing battles and the stress on the participants as they went through the hell of war. To read this book is to live with a group of soldiers, taking part in their fears and hardships as they begin as rookies to become hardened fighting men, used to the ever-present danger of losing their lives, and learning to accept the ones that were lost.

War stories are often written as a patriotic tribute for the winning side, often promoting glory. Conversely, they may serve as a grim warning of war's horrors, emphasizing the stupidity of our species electing to solve problems by killing each other. The Forgotten is neither one nor the other; yet manages to infuse elements of both through the eyes of a small band of participants. We live with them, feel for them, and suffer the dreadful realities of war and death. There is no judgement here, the Chinese enemy is faceless, the historical causes of the war are not discussed. All that is important is encapsulated in the reality these men must face. And the story is told with masterful competence by an author who knows, in minute detail, how the military, their weapons, and manoeuvres must operate together if they are to win.

Bob Mackay has successfully ensured that "The Forgotten" will be remembered.

Patrick McLaren
Author: Magic Travels: The Unlikely Adventures of a Geologist
patrickmclarenauthor.com
Magic Travels ...more "

Jul 09, 2024 04:46PM · see review