Product Description

This is the second part of John Masters' autobiography: how he fought with his Gurkha regiment during World War II until his promotion to command one of the Chindit columns behind enemy lines in Burma. Written by a bestselling novelist at the height of his powers, it is an exceptionally moving story that culminates in him having to personally shoot a number of wounded British soldiers who cannot be evacuated before their position is overrun by the Japanese. It is an uncomfortable reminder that Churchill's obsession with 'special forces' squandered thousands of Allied lives in operations that owed more to public relations than strategic calculation. This military and moral odyssey is one of the greatest of World War II frontline memoirs.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #462566 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-11
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

About the Author
John Masters was commissioned into the Gurkha Rifles on the eve of the Second World War and rose to command one of the Chindit columns fighting behind the lines against the Japanese in Burma. He left the Army after the war to pursue a very profitable career as a novelist.

Customer Reviews

A thoroughly good read
Whilst this book lets the reader into the personal life of John Masters, it also provides an understanding of what it feels like to command a large body of troops. The story begins, interestingly, in a theatre of war not often discussed: the fighting in the area of Syria and Iraq against the Vichy French and ending with an advance right up to the border with Turkey. The bulk of the book, however, covers Masters�s experience with the Chindits in Burma and how through the death of Ord Wingate he unexpectedly, and at a relatively young age, ends up commanding a brigade. There are brief insights into the well known commanders of the time including Slim and Stilwell. What comes through well in this book is how a commander has to make decisions and how Masters reacts to various situations to maintain morale of his men and keep his brigade a unified, cohesive unit. These range from refusing to accept a blanket from a sergeant during a monsoon, to giving the order to shoot the badly wounded rather than leave them to the Japanese � and having to look each wounded man in the eye knowing that he will have to give that order. No only is this book a thoroughly good read it could well be of use to modern managers as a lesson in decision making. It also tells of Masters�s personal life and his love of India; there is a feeling when finishing this book of being given the privilege of sharing in a part someone�s life.

A fantastic read.
This is a fantastic read. Well above average for miliary memoirs, I think it is better even than John Masters' earlier 'Bugles and a Tiger' because it is faster moving and deals with bigger themes. It tells the story of John Masters' own action-packed world war two career; Iraq, Vichy Syria, Staff College, the Chindits and finally the re-taking of Mandalay. The ingenuity, scale - and the suffering - of the second Chindit expedition inevitably form the lion's share of this 330 page book but there are also interludes for Masters' love both for Barbara Rose and for the mountains of India. Many people emerge as heroes from Masters' direct and surprisingly moving account; his Chindit brigade medical officer, a young Gurkha officer, a dependable, intelligent mule and Major (Acting Brigadier) John Masters himself.

A Brilliant Piece of War Reportage
John Masters is a fantastic writer, as shown by his post-war career. But here he concentrates on his wartime experiences, and brings them to life as well as any of his novels. Although he details his other employment the book concentrates on the famous Second Chindit operation, which he began as brigade major of 111th Brigade. But following the death of Wingate and the promotion of the brigade commander, 'Joe' Lentaigne, to take over, Masters was appointed to command the brigade.

With Wingate dead the Chindits found themselves supporting the American-Chinese forces under 'Vinegar Joe' Stilwell, a noted Anglophobe - indeed, misanthrope - who told Lentaigne the Chindits were a 'bunch of lily-livered Limey popinjays'. He then fought them until they were so exhausted that to Masters everyone seemed to move like sleepwalkers in slow motion. 'A Cameronian lieutenant fell headfirst into a weapon pit and two Japanese soldiers five yards away leaned weakly on their rifles and laughed, slowly, while the officer struggled to his feet, slowly, and trudged up the slope the shells fell slowly and burst with long slow detonations and the men collapsed slowly to the ground, blood flowing in gentle gouts into the mud.'

Finally, after a bitter series of signals, Masters' demand for medical examination of 111th Brigade was agreed to. Over three days all the remaining 2,200 men were examined, of whom those judged fit for service in any theatre amounted to 118. Masters added his own name to the list and
asked, with bitter sarcasm, for orders from Stilwell for the remainder of his brigade. Stilwell sent them: 111th Company, as he now called it, would guard a Chinese artillery battery. When they arrived at their new task the friendly but puzzled American liaison officer said that they did not, really, need guarding much. 'I wasn't going to let the Chinese get away with that nonsense', wrote Masters. 'When a major of Chinese artillery gets a brigade commander of the Regular Indian Army assigned to protect him, he's damn well going to be protected.' They dug positions; when begged to leave, they dug deeper. After 10 days someone tired of this nonsense and 111th Company was finally permitted to leave Burma. Masters 'scrambled into a C-47 and, not knowing or caring where it was going, fell asleep'. 'The Road Past Mandalay' is surely the best memoir of campaign.