The War that Never Ended: A Short History of the Korean War

by Gordon Kerr

The Korean War of 1950-1953 ended in a frustrating stalemate, the echoes of which reverberate to this day. It was the only conflict of the Cold War in which forces of major nations of the two opposing systems—capitalism and communism—confronted each other on the battlefield. And yet, in the decades since it was fought it has been strangely neglected, perhaps because no one was able to claim the victor’s spoils. This book details the origins, battles, politics and personalities of the Korean War, a war for which no peace treaty was ever signed.

192 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2020

About the author

Gordon Kerr was born in the Scottish new town of East Kilbride and worked in the wine trade and then bookselling and publishing before becoming a full-time writer. He is the author of numerous books in a variety of genres, including art, history, true crime, travel and humour. He has a wife and two children and lives in Hampshire and—when he can—South West France.

Reviews

[William Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

This short summary of the Korean War includes a far amount of information, but anyone looking for insights into that tragic conflct will be disappointed. Gruesome details are included throughout, which add nothiong to the quality of the book. A major omission is any map or maps to depict the course of the war, and any illustrations of the leaders involved, and also the landscape of Korea. The text includes the conventional wisdom that the DPRK started the war by attacking the south; this has been debunked, and south Korean leader Syngman Rhee is now known to have ordered an invasion of the north, having been spurred on by the USA and the fact that his country had twice the population of the DPRK. The Korean War was a civil war between two parts of the Korean nation; this is completely omitted from the book, which throughout assumes that the DPRK and south Korea were separate countries. Korea, Vietnam and Germany were divided after 1945; Vietnam suffered a civil war until 1975. Not recommended

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice bit sized short history of the Korean War. Not heavy or overly in depth but gives a good overview to the war that never ended. It charts the reason for the start and prolonging of the conflict with China getting involved. Then the armistice and North and South Korea into present day.
Worth a read if you want a brief oversight into the war.
Personally I would’ve liked to have had a little more in other nations fighting with UN and not brushed over by Team America. That’s the reason for only 4 and not 5 ⭐️.

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, short synopsis of the Korean War that confusingly is written from a British perspective and includes a disproportionate amount of info on UK forces and diplomacy.
All the same a worthwhile primer. Loses a star for zero maps or pictures.

[thehoggle · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[jj Grilliette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good short summing up of Korean War. Not too much detail but enough to know something about the war.

[Nick Girvin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess at least it warns you that it's a "short history," but a lot of very crucial information was left out. It tries to play a neutral look but kinda falls short of that because of this. Not really recommended.