The Bridges at Toko-Ri
James A. Michener
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bridges_at_Toko-Ri_(novel)<br>The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1953) is a novella by American author James A. Michener. The book details the experiences of United States Navy pilots in the Korean War as they undertake a mission to destroy heavily protected bridges in enemy territory. <br><p>In 1951, Michener, a former United States Navy officer, was an embedded reporter with the Navy's Task Force 77. He was on the aircraft carriers USS&nbsp;<i>Essex</i>&nbsp;<span>(CV-9)</span> and USS&nbsp;<i>Valley Forge</i>&nbsp;<span>(CV-45)</span> offshore in Korea, and wrote for <i>The Saturday Evening Post</i> and <i>Reader's Digest</i> on the Korean air war.[The rescue climax of the story echoes the exploits of Lt. John Kelvin Koelsch who was the first helicopter pilot awarded the Medal of Honor and Duane Thorin, a helicopter pilot on the USS&nbsp;<i>Rochester</i>&nbsp;<span>(CA-124)</span>.
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