"A chronicle of the extraordinary feats of heroism by Marines called on to do the impossible during the greatest battle of the Korean War."--Provided by publisher. On October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur convinced President Harry Truman that the Communist forces of Kim Il-sung would be utterly defeated by Thanksgiving. The Chinese, he said with near certainty, would not intervene in the war. As he was speaking, 300,000 Red Chinese soldiers began secretly crossing the Manchurian border. As Americans moved deep into the snowy mountains of North Korea, toward the trap Mao had set along the frozen shores of the Chosin Reservoir, what followed was one of the most harrowing operations in American military history. Sides' account provides a grunt's-eye view of history. -- adapted from jacket.

Prologue: Morning calm -- Seoul. The professor ; Traitor's house ; Across the Han ; Beneath the lighthouse ; The battle of the barricades ; The savior of our race ; God's right-hand man ; The tiger wants human beings -- To the mountains. Many, many ; King's envoy to Hamhung ; Heroic remedies ; Will o' the wisp ; Broken arrows ; A powerful instrument ; Fattened for the kill ; Never too late to talk ; Never a more daring fight -- The reservoir. Easy for us, tough for others ; Boon companions ; Easy Company holds here ; Where the bullet belongs ; Gung-ho, you cowardly bastards ; When the lead is flying ; A hot reception ; The war council ; An entirely new era -- Red snow. You will all be slaughtered ; Kissing a buzz saw ; Morphine dreams ; No soft options ; One-man army ; Every weapon that we have ; The ridgerunners ; This place of suffering -- To the sea. Attacking in a different direction ; In the day of trouble ; I'll get you a goddamn bridge ; Blood on the ice ; Taking departure ; The Bridge of Long Life ; Down to earth ; The most harrowing hour ; The crossing ; We will see you again the south ; We walk in the hand of God -- Epilogue: In the pantheon.