Chosin: Hold the Line (includes Chosin: To the Sea)

Based on the epic true story of the Chosin Reservoir campaign of the Korean War! In the winter of 1950, deep within the frozen mountains of North Korea, 15,000 U.S. Soldiers and Marines were surrounded and trapped by 120,000 Chinese soldiers. Despite the odds, the Marines refused to surrender and fought their way 78 miles to the sea and rescued 98,000 refugees. The two stories in this book tell a tale of sacrifice and courage that contends with the story of the 300 Spartans at Thermopylae as one of the most heroic feats in history. Hold the Line, written by Richard C. Meyer and illustrated by Thomas Jung. Seventeen year old Private First Class Billy French, fresh out of high school, is one of 5,000 Marines sent to war without going to bootcamp. Seen by the WWII vets as "sub-standard," he is assigned as a mail clerk. While delivering mail to the grunts of Fox Company, French is trapped in a massive surprise attack launched by the Communist Chinese Army. Outnumbered and facing total annihilation, French and his fellow Marines face brutal hand-to-hand combat and unrelenting human wave attacks as they fight their way 64 miles to freedom. To The Sea, written by Brian Iglesias and illustrated by Otis Frampton. When a small North Korean village is caught in the middle of the horrific fighting, two young children must flee for their lives. Mina and her little brother Jae Sun brave a 60-mile, hell-on-earth journey with the hopes of honoring their parent's final wishes of escaping to freedom. Through sheer perseverance-- and the help of a few Marines-- Mina and Jae Sun make it to the sea and are rescued in what remains as the single largest seaborne evacuation of 'enemy' refugees in world history.