| GIVE ME TOMORROW |
Patrick O'Donnell This untold story opens in the steamy summer of 1950. Unprepared for the invasion of South Korea, the Marine Corps scrapes the bottom of the barrel and gives Sergeant Major Zullo reservists who barely knew how to fire a rifle or throw a grenade. In a race against time, Zullo turns raw reservists into U.S. Marines in a matter of weeks. In the vein of Band of Brothers, a decorated combat veteran of Guadalcanal forms bonds with many of his men, especially those of the tightly knit George Company machine-gun section. The narrative revolves around this group: a Navajo Indian trying to earn his honor as a warrior, a Southern boy from Tennessee, a blue-blooded reporter turned marine, and a pair of twin brothers. With Zullo leading them, the machine-gun section and George fight their way ashore on the first wave of the Inchon landing. Moving off the beach they spearhead the attack on Seoul in a Stalingrad-like house-to-house fight which climaxes in a pitched battle with enemy tanks. November 1950 is one of the most fateful months of the Korean War. American units land on North Korea’s eastern shoreline and drive north toward the Chinese border, routing the North Korean forces, only to be surprised by a much more dangerous enemy: Hundreds of thousands of Chinese troops have streamed across the Yalu River to save the North Korean regime. The Chinese surround the entire Marine Expeditionary Force and thousands of army troops at the Chosin Reservoir. The entire war hangs in the balance. By an odd twist of fate, George Company has been accidentally left behind on the beaches, one of the few units in reserve. George is cobbled together with other units into Task Force Drysdale, and sent by headquarters on a suicide mission: to break through the Chinese cordon around the Chosin Reservoir and reinforce the marine base at Hagaru-ri, which is under siege by thousands of Chinese troops. In an epic, untold story of courage and valor, they embark on a twelve-mile death march, pushing up a narrow mountain road menaced by thousands of Chinese troops. If the Chinese take Hagaru-ri, the entire Chosin Reservoir is lost. Once inside the marine perimeter at Hagaru-ri, George Company is ordered to attack East Hill. Both sides recognize whomever controls East Hill will win the battle. George Company bravely assaults and captures the hill, but hangs on by its fingernails. Living off of Tootsie Rolls and melted snow for two days in forty-below weather, George Company, led by the machine-gun section, holds off human waves of Chinese troops. The battle unfolds through the eyes of the four best friends. In his dying moments, the reporter gives his watch to the Navajo, and the brave marine carries it for thirty-five years through numerous campaigns. Tragically, many members of the section are killed in action. Nevertheless, their heroic stand on the hill blunts the Chinese offensive, enabling engineers inside Hagaru-Ri to complete an airfield to ship in badly needed reinforcements and evacuate the wounded. George later helps lead the breakout from the Chosin trap. Through the war, the company fights in nearly every major engagement, receiving more Medals of Honor than any other similar unit, and earning the moniker "Bloody George." The story concludes thirty-six years later at the reunion. One of the veterans continued the search for the other men, and symbolically, the Navajo returns the watch to the reporter’s brother. Most of the main characters, including Zullo, are alive and have agreed to tell their story. As of this year, Zullo is also being recommended for the Medal of Honor by the officers and men of George Company. "Pat O'Donnell is, quite simply, one of the best combat historians of our time. In GIVE ME TOMORROW, he turns his attention to the Korean War and brings the story of the George Company Marines to life in a way that will keep you turning pages. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wishes to understand something of the realities of combat."—Dr. John McManus "[In GIVE ME TOMORROW] George Company’s performance at Chosin Reservoir practically defines heroism. O’Donnell brings it to vivid life."—Kirkus Reviews "Patrick O'Donnell has a rare talent for isolating and burrowing into the great military stories of recent history. With Give Me Tomorrow, he applies his well-seasoned skills to a brutal, Thermopylae-like battle from the Korean War—a battle that tested the upper limits of heroism and the outer limits of human endurance"—Hampton Sides, author of Ghost Soldiers and Blood and Thunder "To understand what it means to commit body, mind and spirit to the defense of our country under the most arduous conditions, we only need to read "GIVE ME TOMORROW." The legacy of brotherhood, the spirit of commitment and the example of sacrifice in George Company's hellish fight reminds us all the cost to keep alive our experiment in democracy."—Gen. James N. Mattis (U.S. Marines) "A meticulously crafted narrative that not only follows theheroic struggles of one Marine unit, but gives the reader a sense of what for most Americans is, sadly enough, a forgotten war. Absolutely flawless: if you only read one book about the Korean War, Give Me Tomorrow should be that book."—John Mosier, historian and author of The Blitzkrieg Myth
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