| M*A*S*H By Richard Hooker |
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| Before anyone knew who Alan Alda was and before Donald Sutherland was a reknowned actor there was a book. This book sparked a revolutionary movie and a landmark television show. Entertainment was changed forever by the pen of Richard Hooker. |
| M*A*S*H tells the hilarious story of three young army surgeons during the Korean War. In this book you follow “Trapper” John McIntyre, “Duke” Augustus Bedford Forrest, and “Hawkeye” Benjamin Franklin Pierce as they sew up the war-ravaged soldiers. They were considered the some of the finest in the operating room, but as soon as they left they became the most undisciplined draftees ever. Through the pains of dying souls and the truths of suicide, the men’s mentalities were put to the test. To hide their fears and sadness they keep an upbeat and wild attitude and always found time between shifts to have a little fun. From a zany football game to their late night martinis these surgeons did it all. Though they seemed pretty inconsiderate and irresponsible, all they wanted was to leave that horrible place. |
| One Book Started It All..... |
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| My expectations for M*A*S*H were very high. I am an avid watcher of the television show and have seen the movie several times. I decided to read the book because I had become completely obsessed with the show and movie. The book met my expectations and was even a little better than I had expected. It was very well written on the most part (sometimes it got confusing because I know nothing about medicine and it would plunge into long descriptions of surgeries). The author wasn’t afraid to write about controversial issues like suicide and loudly proclaimed his anti-war thoughts. He took the reader into a place that most people had never heard about, the army hospital, and explored the inner feelings that many people experience when thrown into an unexpected situation. The author took a distressing and gloomy situation and used his wit to turn it into an upbeat book full of funny quotations and outlandish antics. This book showed that the only way to get through a bad situation is to make the best of it. This is a book every fan of the television show and movie should read. |
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| From the crazy poker games, to the soldiers on their deathbeds, M*A*S*H covered many issues that other books have never tried to. It inspired a revolutionary television show and a groundbreaking movie. It has become one of my favorite books. I hope you to go and read it and discover everything it has to offer. It is definitely like what Hawkeye Pierce once said, “Finest kind.” |
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