Korean War

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The Korean War by Bruce Cummings

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The Korean War by Bruce Cummings

The greatest gift a work of history can give is to take a subject that you thought you knew something about and to show you that either your knowledge was far from extensive or it was fundamentally flawed. Years ago, Andrew Ayton and Philip Preston’s book on Crécy complicated the narrative of that battle to such a degree that I’m still reeling from the discovery. Bruce Cummings’ history of the Korean War has achieved a similar feat. This slim 250-page volume radically reframes the war in a way that challenged all my base assumptions about what I thought I knew and has made me think about the Korean War in a completely different way. I’m not sure that I will ever be the same. In complicating the war, Cummings’ digs up hard truths that many would prefer to forget, and which are largely absent from a bittersweet if essentially triumphalist narrative of the war that prevails in many other accounts. This book is essential reading, but at the same time I’m not sure if its impact can be felt as keenly if you haven’t already read at least one other book on the subject which makes me hesitate to recommend it as the best introductory history of the topic.

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2024 in Review and My Top 7 Games of the Year*

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2024 in Review and My Top 7 Games of the Year*

Last year was one of meandering and trying new things to the detriment of repeat plays – my BGStats end of year report indicates that I played 48 different games, 42 for the first time. For all the new games that I played, I don’t feel like all that many really stuck with me a year later. I faced a few disappointments in terms of games I was initially excited about failing to deliver, and I played some old masterpieces which I enjoyed but maybe won’t make my favorite of all time lists. Trying so many new games also meant that I rarely spent as much time with each individual title as I would have liked. For 2025 I am hoping to spend more time with most of the games I play, digging a bit deeper into the designs rather than playing just enough for a review and then sticking it back on the shelf.

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A Year(ish) Abroad

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A Year(ish) Abroad

On the 13th of September, 2024 I moved to South Korea.

Not permanently, at least I don’t intend for it to be, but for at least the next year this is where I live. My partner has a job at the local university, my daughter is in the kindergarten, and I’m doing stay at home dad stuff plus whatever freelance work comes my way (hey, if you’re looking for an editor or historian, get in touch).

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Korea: The Mobile War by Jim Dunnigan

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Korea: The Mobile War by Jim Dunnigan

First on my docket for operational games on the Korean War is the original, Jim Dunnigan’s design from 1971. This doesn’t seem to be a particularly beloved title these days, based on BGG ratings and anecdotal evidence I’ve gathered on social media, but as the first game on the topic (as far as I’m aware) and one that was published within twenty years of the war’s end, I couldn’t help but want to try it. I can’t say that my experience was comprehensive, I played the opening scenario and just dabbled with the system, but I have some initial thoughts just from pushing counters around for a few hours.

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Wargaming Korea: 1950-1953

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Wargaming Korea: 1950-1953

Partly inspired by some potential changes in my own life and partly because this year marks the tenth anniversary since my grandfather passed away, I’ve found myself with a newfound interest in the Korean War. I’m resisting the urge to turn this into a research/game project of a similar scale to We Intend to Move on Your Works, but I intend to at least dip my toe in and I would like to have a little structure as I dive deeper. With that goal in mind, I recently read The Coldest Winter and I’ve a short reading list to tackle over the rest of this year. In terms of games, I’m focusing only on operational games that look at the whole Korean peninsula – nothing tactical for the moment. I don’t want this to balloon into a huge life consuming project, so I’m only planning to play at most a handful of games.

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My Grandpa's War

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My Grandpa's War

Today marks the tenth anniversary since my grandpa died. He was 91, he had recently had major surgery and ended up going to hospice where he died peacefully. I was 3,000 miles away doing my PhD in Dublin, Ireland. Few people had as large an impact on me as he did. He taught me how to ride a bicycle but more than that he was just there for most of my childhood being himself. I have, unsurprisingly, been reflecting on him and his impact as this anniversary approached. When I was last in Virginia I found copies in my brother’s house of some memoirs he wrote in his final years, and I thought this would be a good time to share one: in this case, his memory of his time at war.

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The Coldest Winter by David Halberstam

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The Coldest Winter by David Halberstam

Due to a confluence of factors best discussed elsewhere, I’ve recently experienced a surge of interest in the history of the Korean War. While digging around looking for books on the topic, I heard a recommendation for David Halberstam’s book on the podcast Wargames to Go. Luckily my local library had it, so I picked it up, not fully realizing that it is nearly 700 pages long. This is a pretty dense book with a lot of terminology and specific military information but Halberstam’s background in journalism shows as he breaks down complex information well and keeps the story engaging without being too overwhelming. Overall, The Coldest Winter is a very good book, but I also think it is a book with some very clear limitations.