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Reckless: The Racehorse Who Became A Marine Corps Hero

From the New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Heart of Everything That Is, comes the unlikely story of a racehorse who truly became a war hero, beloved by the Marine Corps and decorated for bravery. Her Korean name was Ah-Chim-Hai—Flame-of-the-Morning. A four-year-old chestnut-colored Mongolian racehorse, she once amazed the crowds in Seoul with her remarkable speed. But when war shut down the tracks, the star racer was sold to an American Marine and trained to carry heavy loads of artillery shells across steep hills under a barrage of bullets and bombs. The Marines renamed her Reckless. Reckless soon proved fearless under fire, boldly marching alone through the fiery gauntlet, exposed to explosions and shrapnel. On some of her uphill treks, Reckless shielded human reinforcements. The Chinese, soon discovering the bravery of this magnificent animal, made a special effort to kill her. But Reckless never slowed. As months passed, the men came to appreciate her not just as a horse but as a fellow Marine.

Paperback: 320 pages

Publisher: NAL (August 4, 2015)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0451466519

ISBN-13: 978-0451466518

Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches

Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #1,087,377 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #91 in Books > History > Military > Korean War > Campaigns #375 in Books > Science & Math > Biological Sciences > Animals > Horses #906 in Books > History > Military > United States > Veterans

“There was something in Reckless that was also the best in the Marines, that quality that urged them onward beyond their natural strength and spirit.” Author Tom Clavin (THE HEART OF EVERYTHING THAT IS) revives the horrors and heroism of the Korean War (“a lot of courage, but little glory”) in this biography of a little Mongolian mare that became a deservedly decorated Marine sergeant and retired with full pension rights.Destined for greatness, the mare was the offspring of a game racing dam and the charge, for a time, of a hard-working stable-boy and war waif, Kim Huk Moon. Though Kim knew her finer capabilities, he was forced to use her to seek out and haul junk to help the boy’s struggling family. But one day, he had a chance to put her out on the racetrack where she belonged. Marine Lt Eric Pedersen saw the horse racing and offered to buy her for $250, an enormous sum for Kim, cash he needed to stock up on survival goods and purchase a prosthetic leg for his sister.Horses have been used in warfare since man first tamed them, and Reckless would be no exception. Though small, she could carry one-quarter of her weight in rifles and ammo. Clavin has studiously researched and clearly loves his subject matter --- not only Reckless, but also the courageous men with whom she worked. Sgt. Joe Latham trained her to navigate the terrain with “holes in the ground gouged out by artillery and mortar blasts, and dead and wounded men to avoid stepping on,” hauling loads of shells or burdened with a heavy recoilless rifle. She was taught to kneel, fall and hide, and how to avoid barbed wire and communication cables.

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