From the racetracks of Seoul to the battlegrounds of the Korean War, Reckless was a horse whose strength, tenacity, and relentless spirit made her a hero among a regiment of US Marines fighting for their lives on the front lines.
Her Korean name was Ah-Chim-Hai, meaning Flame-of-the-Morning. A four-year-old chestnut-colored Mongolian racehorse with a white blaze down her face and three white stockings, she once amazed the crowds in Seoul with her remarkable speed. But the star racer was soon sold to an American marine and trained to carry heavy loads of artillery shells up and down steep hills under a barrage of bullets and bombs. The marines renamed her Reckless.
Reckless soon proved fearless under fire, boldly trekking alone through the fiery gauntlet, exposed to explosions and shrapnel. For months, her drive and determination kept the marines' guns blazing, while inspiring them with her singular charm. During one day of battle alone, she made fifty-one trips up and down a crucial hill, covering at least twenty-five miles in the heat of combat. On some of her uphill treks, Reckless shielded human reinforcements. The Chinese, soon discovering the unique bravery of this magnificent animal, made a special effort to kill her. But Reckless never slowed. As months passed and the enemy grew bolder, the men came to appreciate her not just as a horse but as a weapon and, eventually, as a fellow marine.
In Reckless, Tom Clavin, national bestselling coauthor of Halsey's Typhoon, tells the unlikely story of a racehorse who truly became a war hero, beloved by the US Marine Corps and decorated for bravery. A moving reminder of the unbreakable bond between people and animals, Reckless is a powerful tale of courage, survival, and even love in the face of overwhelming odds.
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“When Lieutenant Eric Pederson saw a need to find a
better way to carry artillery shells to advanced positions during the
Korean War, he thought a horse would do the trick. He never imagined
that his trip to a Korean racetrack would produce an American hero…Includes dozens of personal stories recounting the
heroics and sacrifices of the marines. In 2013, a statue of Reckless
was installed at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. A fitting
tribute to a real warhorse.”
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Booklist