Leadership in the Crucible

The Korean War Battles of Twin Tunnels and Chipyong-ni

By: Kenneth E. Hamburger

Narrated by: Bill Nevitt

Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's Summary

At the pivotal battles of Twin Tunnels and Chipyong-ni in February 1951, UN forces met and contained large-scale attacks by Chinese forces. Colonel Paul Freeman and the larger-than-life Colonel Ralph Monclar led the American 23rd Infantry Regiment and the French Bataillon de Corée, respectively, in the fierce and dangerous battles that followed the precipitous UN retreat down the Korean Peninsula.

In Leadership in the Crucible, Kenneth Hamburger details the actions of the units in the United Nations counteroffensive following the Chinese intervention, including routine patrols, the harrowing battle of Twin Tunnels, and the pivotal siege of Chipyong-ni. From extensive personal interviews and a careful reconstruction of the written record, Hamburger brilliantly analyzes the roles that training, cohesion, morale, logistics, and leadership play in success or failure on the front lines of limited war. He also addresses the vexing problem of when, and at what level, commanders have the right and even the responsibility to question lawful orders they believe are flawed.

In this careful consideration of combat leadership at all levels, Hamburger offers his listeners stories of men sustaining themselves and one another to the limits of human endurance.

©2003 Kenneth E. Hamburger (P)2017 Redwood Audiobooks

Critic Reviews

"His coverage of fighting in cold winter weather with all its problems is superb. I highly recommend this book." ( Journal of Military History)

"Masterful and thought-provoking...makes a significant contribution to the understanding of combat leadership and of the human element in warfare." ( The Journal of America's Military Past)

The Korean War Finally Gets A Bit More Air Time

This is a scholarly work that somehow manages to capture the humanity of men at war. Kenneth E. Hamburger obviously did a tremendous amount of research, gathered information and anecdotes from veterans, stayed away from interjecting opinions even when certain engagements were controversial. I appreciated the balanced view.
I've come to be quite fond of Nevitt as a narrator. He seems to have a very good voice for the more scholarly works of military history, one of my favorite subjects. I must admit, however, that I don't know that much about the Korean War (It's a tragedy, but they didn't even touch upon it in high school!), so I don't know whether the pronunciations of battles and words for Korean geography are correct. Nevitt blows right through them with nary a stumble.
I'm very glad to have listened to this, and it's rather made me want to listen to the more comprehensive works of the Korean War as a whole.
I was given this audiobook free at my request for a fair and honest review.

Typical West Point / elite university instructor

Don’t give me wrong, I’ve known some great West Point officers. I served 34 years in special forces. I chuckled at the authors writing style, boring and worse, often non-factual and more service component hubris than history. I finished the book just to finish it, it is written in a terrible style that a teacher would instruct students that have to be there and have no other choice-just like a classroom full of West Point Cadets. Having both studied the Korean War and having been stationed in Korea more than eight years working shoulder to shoulder and sharing hardships daily with our Korean ally, the book is neither history nor reality.

Excellent Korean War History Story

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This review is for the audio copy of Leadership in the Crucible The Korean War Battles of Twin Tunnels and Chipyong-ni by Kenneth E. Hamburger and narrated by Bill Nevitt. I’ve listened to quite a few war history books. Some of them are long and grueling and filled to the brim with details that don’t need to be told. Well, this book is not one of those. This is an excellent story about specific battle conducted by some specific units. It is a story of leadership and what worked and what didn’t work. I highly recommend it. And, of course, it was read by one of my favorite narrators. He made the story and characters come alive in my mind. Bill has the ability to make droll novels palatable and interesting novels come to life.

Informative & enjoyable

My first read/listen from author Kenneth E. Hamburger was not my typical read. A non-fiction work detailing the history of the Korean War battles of Twin Tunnels & ChipyonNi. Highly detailed & well-written, this book may not be for everyone but I found it enjoyable. Bill Nevitt’s excellent narration made the 9-hour 19-minute book pass quickly. I was given an Audible copy of this book & am voluntarily reviewing it. I was given an Audible copy of this book & am voluntarily reviewing it. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).

Excellent detailed history of of the 23rd RCT

Thorough history of real men in real combat. the writing and the reading put me right in the fox holes and command centers in the middle of real combat. The fog of war and the individuality of each soldier, Officer and personal actions of each. Told the story and didn't judge. being retired military veteran myself [although not a combat veteran] I could well understand the persona positive and otherwise of each.
Well written and well narrated.

like u were their

Narration is so important. And its right on here. The detail is amazing, from the top Generals on down. I do not think could have read it and got as much out of it as i did from listing to it. Bill Nevitt has recorded many books and is some one to look for.
Just covering 2 battles felt like you understand the whole war. GREAT BOOK and NARRATOION.
I got a free copy of this book.

A bit mechanical but still very interesting

This is a very mechanical, textbook like read. It’s part narration and part lessons in battle. And where one begins and one ends can be confusing. Korea was a limited war and detailed analysis of battles are very interesting. But it’s a bit wooden and hard to connect with. And then reasons for what was done and why or why not it was wrong come at awkward times. This makes it hard to truly focus on the work without getting distracted.

Other than that it is very learned and studious. And Bill Nevitt’s narration is excellent. He’s a very good history narrator. He doesn’t over do it at any point. It’s overall a good listen.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Evocative and tactile

Very well written book giving a soldier level view of combat. Evocative and tactile, you feel what these men felt.
Talented voice artist.

A fascinating bit of Korean War history

I am not generally a reader of war books, but I found the Leadership in the Crucible to be fascinating, and I’m sure those who are interested in war, especially the Korean War, will particularly appreciate the book. This book is full of first hand reports with a focus on the leaders in the Battle of the Twin Tunnels and Chipyong-Ni. There is much to be learned from history, and there are some truly inspiring and tragic stories included here.

The narrator does a very good job bringing bringing the words in the book to life.

I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Reads like a textbook but is very interesting, I like the frank analysis of the leadership styles.

The book overall reads like a text book and not a novel. There are a few places that are a bit dry, but overall the book is an analysis of different leaders and leadership styles as they pertain to the war. The author talks about good leaders and what made them good leaders, and he also talks about bad leaders and their shortcomings. The Author also addresses what came about from the good decisions and the bad decisions.
I would recommend this book for anyone who is a leader and is trying to be the best leader they can. The blunt analysis of the generals, commanders, etc. is refreshing and something you do not hear about often. There is enough detail in the book to keep the reader engaged, and the help the reader to understand the cost of bad leadership in the military and that carries over into everyday life.
I did not care for the reader though, it is a slight complaint but I think the book would do better with a deeper voice.

Leadership in the Crucible

If you have an interest in this part of history, then you’ll probably find it really interesting. It’s filled with lots of background and interesting facts but as an audiobook I found it a little hard to digest all the details. I’d probably have found it easier in paper format.
Great narration and Bill makes it easy to listen to!
This is my honest opinion on a free review copy.

A fantastic listen

A different kind of story for me, which I really enjoyed. Highly recommended. Narration as always was superb