copyright 1968; William Morrow and Company publishers, New York; hardbound in true blue boards with timberwolf lettering along spine; quite good condition with unmarked pages; very slight list to binding; no dust jacket.
 
Description -
A 1968 novel by Richard Hooker (the pen name for former military surgeon Dr. H. Richard Hornberger and writer W. C. Heinz) which is notable as the inspiration for the feature film MASH (1970) and TV series M*A*S*H. The novel is about a fictional U.S. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War.
 
Hooker followed the novel with two sequels. Additionally, a series of sequels of rather different and lighter tone were credited to Hooker and William E. Butterworth, but actually written by Butterworth alone.
 
Plot -
Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake, commander of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, requests two new surgeons for his unit. Captains Duke Forrest and Hawkeye Pierce share a jeep to the post, discovering that they share a taste for alcohol and similar views about many issues. Blake assigns them to the night shift, billeting them with Major Jonathan Hobson, a Midwestern preacher and surgeon.
 
Despite their dislike of authority and penchant for making wisecracks and pulling pranks, the new doctors exhibit exceptional surgical skills and commitment to their job, gaining the respect of their colleagues. They become annoyed by Maj. Hobson's religious fervor and insist that Blake have Maj. Hobson rebilleted. Friction mounts between the major and the new captains; when Major Hobson's prayers begin to annoy everyone, Col. Blake arranges to have him sent stateside.
 
Pierce and Forrest also request a chest surgeon for the unit. When the new man, Captain John McIntyre, arrives, he displays exceptional skill, but resists their attempts to draw him into their social circle. During a recreational football game, Hawkeye suddenly remembers playing football against McIntyre in college and introduces McIntyre to everyone as Trapper John...