Heart of the Century - 1949 to 1951, Korea, the Shadow of a Third World War...and Everyday Life in the Daily Newspaper (Paperback)

The years 1949, 1950 and 1951 were a highly perilous time that can take a justified place among the toughest of the 20th Century.
Author Tom Mueller recounts the stories of those years, gathered from more than 170 front pages of newspapers in 12 states. He explores the lives of six men who died in Korea and interviews 15 who fought there, some of whom were wounded. One survived only because the shrapnel hit the prayer book that he kept over his heart.
The book also tells dozens of smaller stories: A new elephant was arriving in Madison, Wis.; newspapers were reporting the status of agricultural crops and running photos of local beauty queens; and a national radio show was reading sentimental poems.
Tom Mueller's previous two books were about men and women in World War II. Now he focuses on the Korean War and the multiple other political and economic tensions of the period, plus many facets of daily life in the exact middle of the century.
If you are a Baby Boomer, you will marvel after reading this book how close the world came to a Third World War. You also will be entertained by some of the local stories in the newspapers.
Mueller has been writing about wars and soldiers and other historic events for more than 25 years, first for his newspaper and now in his own books.