26 Book Review Frenchy Simon Jeruchim. A Young Jewish-French Immigrant Discovers Love and Art in America—and <strong>War</strong> in Korea.. Fithian Press, Box 2790, McKinleyville, CA 95519. 255pp. ISBN: 1-56474- 449-3. Here is an intriguing book. It is written by a young man whose parents died in concentration camps in Europe. As he result, he moved to the United States, adapted fairly quickly to American culture and language, landed a good job—and got drafted. In the latter respect, he wasn’t any different than thousands of his peers, except for his timing. The book is divided into two roughly equal parts. The first part details Jeruchim’s early days in the United States and his struggles to adapt to his new country. The second describes what happened as he paid the price for adapting—serving in the U.S. Army during war time. Yet, in one of the underlying themes in the book, he never complained. In fact, he relished living in the US and serving in its military. “Frenchy,” as he was called, got drafted in March 1951, despite the fact he was not a U.S. citizen. And, he ended up in Korea with the 5th Regimental Combat Team. There was a certain irony to that, as he suggests on p. 201 I was typing a report and suddenly realized that it was June 6 [1952], the anniversary of D-Day, eight years ago, that memorable day in 1944. I still vividly remember that day where Pere Geslin, my next-door neighbor, who had a shortwave radio hidden in his barn, came running out shouting that he’d heard on the BBC that Allied forces had just landed on the beaches of Normandy. At that time it had seemed too good to be true because the Nazis were still so powerful. Nevertheless, he kept his priorities in order, due in part to the reversal in roles he experienced—and which make this book unique. I remembered how thrilling it had been for me when American convoys rolled into Savigny-le-Vieux, the village where I was hidden in Normandy, and a GI had tossed me a pack of chewing-gum, which I treasured. How could I ever have imagined that one day the roles would be reversed? (p. 190) So, “Frenchy” escaped France, but he did not escape war—nor did he escape the French troops in Korea (not that he wanted to). At one point he learned “that a French battalion was based near the town of Wonju, about sixty miles away from our camp (p. 185)”. He was not the only one who benefited from the visit, as he describes on p. 186: I was so happy to have found them, and before long we were chatting like old friends, guzzling red wine and singing French songs. I had not had so much fun in a long time. One fellow came from Paris and lived on Rue Voltaire, and the other was from Dijon. They told me that they had volunteered to go to Korea rather than be drafted and shipped to Indochina, “the worst hell hole on earth, where soldiers drop like flies,” they said. l didn’t think that Korea was a lot better, but chose to keep that opinion to myself. Eventually 1 had to cut short this delightful visit. “You can’t go back empty-handed!” said the guy from Paris, and he promptly returned from the warehouse with half a dozen bottles of Beaujolais. Although finding a ride back with my precious cargo was a challenge, I was able to bribe someone with a couple of bottles of wine to drive me back to camp. The next day 1 was happy to share the remaining bottles with all the fellows in Operations. Jeruchim was a commercial artist, so he landed some interesting assignments in Korea. (Some of his sketches are included in the book, along with photos of him, his family, etc.) Many of them involved front-line listening post assignments during which he had to draw sketches of Chinese positions. His “up close and personal” viewpoint gave him some keen insights into enemy soldiers. Looking out from those various vantage points I was able to make a series of sketches by carefully and accurately drawing the rocky outcropping and contour of the hills held by the enemy. The purpose of those sketches was to get as much as possible a visual representation of the slopes leading up to the CPV positions. Over each drawing I made, Pfc. Knapp indicated the various latitudes and altitudes divided in “mil,” eventually to be used as points of reference by our F.O.s (fire observers). We had been using powerful field binoculars to carry out our assignment. In the process of scanning the hillside and ridgeline facing us. I accidentally zoomed in on Chinese soldiers digging trenches and carrying equipment. It was an eerie feeling to be able to see the enemy appear right in front of me, as though I could just reach out and touch them. I had a closeup of their faces and expressions. It was almost like eavesdropping on a private conversation. Those soldiers appeared to be young guys, just like us, who I suspected were drawn into the war with little say and nothing to gain. Jeruchim may have felt that way at the time, but he certainly appreciated the opportunity that he received in the US. As he concluded on pp. 254-55: I still get chills whenever I hear the “Star Spangled Banner.” Nobody calls me Frenchy anymore; that hasn’t happened since the <strong>Korean</strong> <strong>War</strong>. But I owe a lot to my French heritage, and being French helped me make friends when I was a new American, especially in the army. It helped me in my career and my love life. I expect a part of me will always be French. But as they say, there is no place like home, and France is not my home. America is my home, and I must end my memoir by saying once more, Merci, America! No doubt a lot of <strong>Korean</strong>s said the same thing to American soldiers after the <strong>Korean</strong> <strong>War</strong>. Not all of them got to do it as eloquently as Jeruchim did, though—in a readable book that is recommended for people looking for a unique angle on the <strong>Korean</strong> <strong>War</strong>. To Order: Write to the address above, call (800) 662-8351, or visit www.danielpublishing.com/bro/jeruchim02.html Price: $14.95, plus $3.00 per order for shipping. (California residents add $1.08 tax per book). <strong>Jan</strong>uary - <strong>Feb</strong>ruary F <strong>2006</strong> The Graybeards
Blaster ‘Baker’ Battery, 31st FA Bn., 7th Infantry Div Vilas “Sid” Morris (1952-53) Outpost 1.3, covering 7th Infantry Division sector “Letting everyone know “Blaster” is there Gun #3, “B” Battery, 31st FA BN: Gunner Vilas Morris Clean-up after direct hit; Kim Koo Kapp and an unidentified American soldier Kim Koo Kapp, ROK soldier assigned to “Blaster” Gun #3 en route to a new location A view of “Old Baldy” (L-R) “Blasters” Cpl. Bates, Vilas “Sid” Morris, Keith Schroeder 27 The Graybeards <strong>Jan</strong>uary - <strong>Feb</strong>ruary F <strong>2006</strong>
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