A review by gabmc
The Coldest Night by Robert Olmstead

3.0

The language in this book was beautiful - even the horrific descriptions of the Korean war, which I know very little about. Henry Childs is only 17 when he falls in love with Mercy, who is only 18. He is still at high school and has a promising baseball career ahead of him. However, first love is strong and Henry and Mercy run away to New Orleans to be together. Mercy comes from a prominent family and her brother and father come and drag her back home. Henry is devastated and so joins the Marines where he is soon sent to Korea. He makes a great friend and barely survives, with horrible napalm burns. His experiences in Korea are brutal and the war forces him to grew up way too quickly.