Ship of Miracles

by Bill Gilbert, Alexander Meigs Haig Jr. (Foreword)

Ship of Miracles is the incredible story of what has been called "the greatest rescue operation by a single ship in the history of mankind".

Against all odds, Captain Leonard La Rue and his crew on the twelve-man merchant ship Meredith Victory transported 14,000 Korean refugees fleeing the Chinese army to safety. They steered the ship through sea battle, a 30-mile web of sea mines, and enemy shelling.

At the fiftieth anniversary of this miraculous rescue, the story told in Ship of Miracles is as touching today as it was then.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

During the evacuation of Hungnam, one merchant marine ship carried 14,000 refugees from North Korea to South Korea. Incredible no one died on the three day journey despite the lack of food, water and sanitary facilities. All told the US fleet brought 105,000 troops, 98,100 refugees and 17,000 vehicles out of the Hungnam port.

Why I started it: I knew nothing of this dramatic rescue and I wanted to learn more.

Why I finished it: This book could have been so much better. Only two chapters was about the sea rescue of the Meredith Victory. The rest was a general history of the Korean War... heavy on the American sources and prejudices.

Reduced rating: I've thought about this book and the more that I think about it the angrier I get. 14,000 people on the ship and he interviewed less than 10? And they were only ones that spoke English and lived near him? Find a bigger sample size! And historical research doesn't mean looking a old newspapers to see what the headlines around the world were. -1 star for being a wonderful story told in a very crappy way.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

It covered the events surrounding an amazing story - triumph during wartime, the capacity of the human spirit - a true miracle of saving all those people. But it was just written so poorly; at times difficult to follow and understand, and a bit dull. I finished it because I wanted to, but wasn't the most enjoyable read.

[Paul Holland]

Outstanding book and a story that everyone should know.

[Donald]

This is the story of the US X Army evacuation of North Korea in December 1950. My wife's grandfather, uncles and aunt were among the 100,000 refugees who fled the Communists, and were part of the sea evacuation. While it was truly a Christmas miracle that so many civilians were able to escape, the pain of being separated from other family members, friends and one's homeland still remains today.

[Bert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story from the Korean War about the risk taken trying to save civilians with some impactful stories how families were divided by the conflict. This is not a hard history book, reading like a Readers Digest version of a book.

[Kara · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was awful! The story could have been told in one or two pages but the author dragged it on for 200+ pages.

[Shelly Saczynski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn't put it down. I can't believe I had never even heard of Hungnam and the Meredith Victory before I found this book.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story, too much repetition, digression and unnecessary information.