Act of War

Lyndon Johnson, North Korea, and the Capture of the Spy Ship Pueblo

By: Jack Cheevers

Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer

In 1968, a small, dilapidated American spy ship set out on a dangerous mission to pinpoint military radar stations along the coast of North Korea. Packed with advanced surveillance equipment and classified intelligence documents, the USS Pueblo was poorly armed and lacked backup by air or sea. Its crew, led by a charismatic, hard-drinking, ex-submarine officer named Pete Bucher, was made up mostly of untested sailors in their teens and twenties.

On a frigid January morning while eavesdropping near the port of Wonsan, the Pueblo was challenged by a North Korean gunboat. When Bucher tried to escape, his ship was quickly surrounded by more patrolboats, shelled and machine-gunned, and forced to surrender. One American was killed and ten wounded, and Bucher and his young crew were taken prisoner by one of the world's most aggressive and erratic totalitarian regimes.

Less than forty-eight hours before the Pueblo's capture, North Korean commandos had nearly succeeded in assassinating South Korea's president in downtown Seoul. Together the two explosive incidents pushed Cold War tensions toward a flashpoint as both North and South Korea girded for war - with fifty thousand American soldiers caught between them.

President Lyndon Johnson rushed US combat ships and aircraft to reinforce South Korea, while secretly trying to negotiate a peaceful solution to the crisis.

Act of War tells the riveting saga of Bucher and his men as they struggled to survive merciless torture and horrendous living conditions in North Korean prisons. Based on extensive interviews and numerous government documents released through the Freedom of Information Act, this book also reveals new details of Johnson's high-risk gambit to prevent war from erupting on the Korean peninsula while his negotiators desperately tried to save the sailors from possible execution.

The backdrop of an international diplomatic poker game, Act of War offers lessons on the perils of covertintelligence operations as America finds itself confronting a host of 21st-century enemies.

©2013 Jack Cheevers (P)2013 Blackstone Audio

Life over Death

Any additional comments?

If you've ever been in the military you need to read this book. If you've ever been in the US Navy you really, need to read this book. If you are a military officer especially in any kind of Billet with command and Authority you really, really need to read this book. If you are a US Naval officer if you don't read this book you probably have made one of the biggest mistakes of your career.

The Bull Never Quits

I was a CT and I knew Captain Bucher. He was one of the nicest officers I met in the Intelligence group. My group helped get the Pueblo ready for their journey around North Korea. I am so sorry that the crew was beaten almost daily. Their team spirit was remarkable considering their living conditions and diet. Many have died because their lives were shortened due their poor diet and beatings. I am so proud of their spirit and resistance they showed.

Great historicAl perspective

The book told much of the story that I did not know. It gave the count of the suffering of the men on the pueblo. As well as events leading up to the capture of the ship. It also provided details around the investigation that happened after the release of the prisoners. Overall it was incredibly interesting.

Excellent recount of an all too forgotten struggle

Breezed through this fine work in 4 days, such was my interest in the subject and my love for the author's narrative of same. I HIGHLY recommend it - what I heretofore thought was an ancillary by-product I've now come to appreciate as a pivotal benchmark in our relations with the DPRK.

Amazing book

Probably one of the best military history books I have ever read. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good read.