Reference List on Korean War
References for the Theme, 2024: Korean War
The following is a list of references for the theme for 2024, “the Korean War” The list is not exhaustive but compiled here to provide some help with initiating research of the topic. Books on Korea will provide you with general information on the theme. Online sites will be helpful in more in-depth researching specific topics of your interest. In addition, you may find several movies, and TV series, and documentaries. Please note that these movies and TV reflect producers’ interpretation of the War, not necessarily the precise facts. The list also contains memoirs and autobiographical stories of the soldiers, and ordinary Koreans.
Books on Korean History
(These are books on comprehensive Korean History which have chapters written about Korean War.)
Eckert, C. J., Lee, K., Lew, Y.I., Robinson, M., & Wagner, E.W. Korea Old and New: A History. Ilchokak, Publishers. 1990.
Lee, K. A New History of Korea. (Trans. Wagner, E. W. & Schutz, E.J.) Harvard University Press. 1988.
Nahm, A. C. A Panorama of 5000 Years: Korean History. Hollym International Corp. (2nd ed.) 2005.
Nahm, A. C. Korea: Tradition & Transformation. Hollym International Corp. (2nd ed.) 1996.
Books on Contemporary Korean History
(These books focus on modern Korean History which have chapters written about Korean War.)
Cha, Victor, and Ramon Pacheco Pardo. Korea: A New History of South and North. Yale University Press. 2023.
Overdorfer, Don, and Robert Carlin. The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History. 3rd. Ed. Basic Books, 2014.
Books on Korean War
Cumings, Bruce. The Korean War: A History. New York: Modern Library, 2010.
(Bruce Cumings, in his book, “The Korean War:A History” presented revisionists’ views on the Korean war, which departed from the traditional view. Articles below are included to help you interpret his views critically.)
Bandow, Doug. “Book Review: The Korean War: A History.” American Spectator, (November 1, 2010). https://www.cato.org/commentary/book-review-korean-war-history
Heilbrunn , Jacob. “The 38th Parallel.” The New York Times, (September 8, 2010). https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/12/books/review/Heilbrunn-t.html
Lee, Jae Il. “The Korean War A History by Bruce Cumings.” Academia, https://www.academia.edu/29598115/The_Korean_War_A_History_by_Bruce_Cumings
Stueck, William. “Revisionism and the Korean War.” The Journal of Conflict Studies 22:1 (Spring 2002): 17-27. https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/JCS/article/view/365/577
Dvorchak, Robert J. Battle for Korea: A History of the Korean Conflict. De Capo Press, 2003.
Goncharov, Sergei N., John W. Lewis, and Xue Litai. Uncertain Partners: Stalin, Mao, and the Korean War, Stanford University Press, 1993.
Halberstam, David. The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War. Waterville, ME: Thorndike Press, 2007.
Li, Xiaobing, Allan Millett, and Bin Yu, Mao’s Generals Remember Korea, University Press of Kansas, 2001.
Millett, Allan R. The Korean War. (The Essential Bibliography Series). Washington, DC: Potomac Books, 2007.
Stueck, William. Rethinking the Korean: A New Diplomatic and Strategic History. Princeton University Press, 2022.
Stueck, William. The Korean War: An International History. Princeton University Press, 1997.
Wada, Haruki. The Korean War: An International History. Tr. By Frank Baldwin, Rowman & Littlefield, 2014.
Articles on Korean War
Brazinsky, Gregg, et al. "Korean War: Open Questions: Historians examine what we still need to know about the so-called 'Forgotten War'." The Wilson Quarterly, vol. 44, no. 3, summer 2020, p. NA. Gale Literature Resource Center, https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA628285342&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=03633276&p=LitRC&sw=w&userGroupName=anon%7E9f56d6e4&aty=open-web-entry
Chen, Jian. “Chinese and American Misjudgment and the Making and Prolonging of the Korean War” Insights & Analysis. (June 23,2020). https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/chinese-and-american-misjudgment-and-making-and-prolonging-korean-war
Dudney, R.S. “Editorial: Why Korea Mattered.” Air Force Magazine 86:7 (XXX 2003): 2-21.
Hanley, Charles J. "No Gun Ri: Official Narrative and Inconvenient Truths." In Truth and Reconciliation in South Korea: Between the Present and Future of the Korean Wars, ed. Jae-Jung Suh. London: Routledge, 2012.
Hanley, Charles, and Martha Mendoza. “The Bridge at No Gun Ri: Investigative Reporting, Hidden History, and Pulitzer Prize.” Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics 5:4 (Fall 2000): 112-117.
Shen, Zhihua. “Revisiting Stalin’s and Mao’s Motivations in the Korean War” Insights & Analysis, (June 22, 2020). https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/revisiting-stalins-and-maos-motivations-korean-war
Government Documents
Critical Situations in the Far East, ORE 58-50, Declassified Primary Source Document. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/DOC_0001166750.pdf
Memoirs, Stories of the War: Korean Experience
Chung, Donald K. The Three Day Promise: A Korean Soldier’s Memoir. Father & Son, 1990.
Gendry-Kim, Keum Suk. The Waiting. Drawn and Quarterly, 2021.
Hurh, Won Moo. I Will Shoot Them from My Loving Heart: Memoir of a South Korean Officer in the Korean War. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co., 2011.
Kim, Hyon. Alone on the Battlefield: A Child Surviving the Korean War. Kirk House Publishers, 2022.
Kim, Myun Haing. Longing for a North Korean Sky. Kindle Edition, 2022.
Kim, Tae-Hyok. Beyond the Border. Independently published, 2023.
Paik, Sun Yap. From Pusan to Panmunjom: Wartime Memoirs of the Republic of Korea's First Four-star General. Dulles, VA: Potomac Books, 2007.
Park, Myung K. Steel Helmet: War Diary and Memoirs of a Korean Boy Soldier. Kindle Edition, 2017.
Memoirs, Stories of the War: American Experience
Brady, James. The Coldest War: A Memoir of Korea. St. Martin's Griffin, 2000.
Chapell, Gerald E. and Richard G. Chapell. Corpsmen: Letters from Korea. The Kent State University Press. 2000.
Collins, Robert W. " U.S. Prisoner of War Mail from the Korean War." The American Philatelist 114:6 (June 2000): 550-555.
Collins, Robert W. " U.S. Prisoner of War Mail from the Korean War." The American Philatelist, 114:6 (June 2000): 550-555.
Granfield, Linda. I Remember Korea: Veterans Tell Their Stories of the Korean War 1950-53. Fitzhenry & Whiteside Ltd, 2003.
Hammel, Eric M. Chosin: Heroic Ordeal of the Korean War. New York: The Vanguard Press, 1981.
Horwitz, Dorothy G., ed. We Will Not Be Strangers: Korean War Letters between a M.A.S.H. Surgeon and His Wife. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1997.
Rice, Douglas. Voices from the Korean War: Personal Accounts of Those Who Served. iUniverse, 2011.
Richardson, Bill, and Kevin Maurer. Valleys of Death: A Memoir of the Korean War. New York: Berkley Publishing Group, 2010.
Sides, Hampton. On Desperate Ground: The Epic Story of Chosin Reservoir--the Greatest Battle of the Korean War. Knopf Doubleday Publishing, 2019.
Sloan, Bill. The Darkest Summer: Pusan and Inchon 1950. Simon and Schuster, 2009.
Spiroff, Boris R. Korea: Frozen Hell on Earth: A Platoon Sergeant's Diary, Korean War 1950-1951. Baltimore: American Literary Press, 1998.
Documentary
Chosin. Directed by Brian Iglesias, Veterans Expeditionary Media, 2010.
Where are you going, Thomas?: a Journey of a Korean War Orphan. Directed by Jackie Choi, 2012.
Korean Movies on Korean War
Battle for Inchon: Operation Chromite (인천 상륙작전). Directed by John H. Lee, Performed by Liam Neeson, Jung-Jae Lee, Sean Richard, and Beom-soo Lee, CJ Entertainment, 2016.
Red Scarf (빨간 마후라) Directed by Shin, Sang-Ok, Performed by Young-kyun Shin and Eun-Hee Choi, Shin Films, 1964.
Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War (태극기 휘날리며). Directed by Je-gyu Kang , Performed by Dong-gun Jang, and Bin Won, KD Media, 2004.
The Battle of Jangsari (장사리, 잊혀진 영웅들). Directed by Kyung-taek Kwak, and Tae-hoon Kim, Performed by Myung-Min Kim, Min-ho Choi, and Megan Fox, Taewon Entertainment, 2019.
The Frontline (고지전). Directed by Hoon Jang, Performed by Ha-kyun Shin, and Soo, Go. TPS Company, 2011
The Marines Who Never Returned (돌아오지 않는 해병) Directed by Man-Hee Lee, Dong-hwi Jang, Moo-ryong Choi, and Bong-seo Gu, Daewon Film Co., Ltd., 1963.
American Movies on Korean War
Devotion. Directed by J. D. Dillars, Performed by Glen Powell, Jonathan Majors, Serinda Swam and Jo Jonas, Sony Pictures, 2022.
M*A*S*H*. Directed by Robert Altman, Performed by Donald Sutherland, Elliott Gould, and Robert Altman, Aspen Productions, 1970.
The Hook. Directed by George Seaton, Performed by Kirk Douglas, and Robert Walker, MGM, 1963.
The Porkchop Hill. Directed by Lewis Milestone, Performed by Gregory Peck, and George Peppard, MGM, 1959.
War Hunt. Directed by Denise Sanders. . Performance by Robert Redford, United Artist, 1962.
Websites
AARP. 70 Years After Korea: Tales of the Forgotten War, https://www.aarp.org/home-family/voices/veterans/info-2023/tales-korean-war.html
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Libraries and Museums. Korean War Interviews, https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/learn/scholars-researchers/research-divisions/oral-history/collection/korean-war/interviews
C-Span Classroom “On This Day: Korean War” https://www.cspan.org/classroom/document/?1870
CNN. Korean War fast facts. July 21, 2023. https://www.cnn.com/2013/06/28/world/asia/korean-war-fast-facts/index.html
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home. Korea War. https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/research/online-documents/korean-war
Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. Korea War and Its Origins https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/online-collections/korean-war-and-its-origins
History Channel. Korean War, https://www.history.com/topics/asian-history/korean-war
History Channel. The Most Harrowing Battle of the Korean War, https://www.history.com/news/korean-war-chosin-reservoir-veterans-stories
Korean War Legacy Foundation https://koreanwarlegacy.org/teaching-tools/korean-war-legacy/
Korean War Veterans Association. “Korean War, A Brief Account by Jack D. Walker,” https://kwva.us/?page=info_korean_war
Library of Congress. Korean War Not Forgotten, Serving Our Voices: Stories from the Veterans History Project. https://www.loc.gov/collections/veterans-history-project-collection/serving-our-voices/korean-war/korean-war-not-forgotten/
Ministry of Patriots and Veteran, ROK. Korean War https://www.mpva.go.kr/english/contents.do?key=973
NPR. Reflecting On A Key Korean War Battle, 70 Years Later, November 27, 2020. https://www.npr.org/2020/11/27/939463876/reflecting-on-a-key-korean-war-battle-70-years-later
PBS Learning Media for Teachers https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/the-korean-war-video/retro-report/
The 22: Korean War International Legacy https://the22koreanwar.org/profiles/
United Nations Command https://www.unc.mil/History/1950-1953-Korean-War-Active-Conflict/
Wilson Quarterly, Summer, 2020 Issue on “Korea : 70 Years on.” https://www.wilsonquarterly.com/quarterly/korea-70-years-on