MASH
Cataloged here as MASH, this entry holds the source novel that became the iconic Robert Altman film and the long running CBS television series, originally written by an actual Korean War surgeon under the pen name Richard Hooker. Set in the early 1950s at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital just behind the front line in South Korea, the book follows three drafted surgeons, Hawkeye Pierce, Trapper John McIntyre, and Duke Forrest, as they cope with twelve hour shifts of meatball surgery on wounded GIs by drinking martinis from a surgically improvised still, conducting wildly elaborate practical jokes on their commanding officer Colonel Henry Blake, and falling in and out of bed with the hospital's nurses. Beneath the irreverent humor lies a clear eyed argument about the absurdity of war and the kinds of dark improvisational coping that combat medicine has always required, and the result has shaped the way Americans imagine military doctors for more than half a century.
Where MASH keeps showing up
One of our editors' lists features this novel.
What you might want to know about MASH
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
Three drafted surgeons, Hawkeye, Trapper John, and Duke, run a mobile army surgical hospital just behind the front lines of the Korean War. They drink, prank, and operate under combat conditions for thirteen-month tours.
MASH originated as Richard Hooker's 1968 novel, was adapted into Robert Altman's 1970 film, and then into the long-running 1972 to 1983 CBS sitcom. The novel's tone is closer to the film than the gentler later seasons of the TV series.
Richard Hooker (William Heinz and H. Richard Hornberger) wrote three MASH novels: MASH, MASH Goes to Maine, and MASH Mania. Several follow-up paperback originals exist by other writers.
MASH was written by Paul Groves, published in 1974 by Longman.
MASH is 24 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, MASH takes most readers under an hour to finish.
MASH is a standalone novel by Paul Groves, not part of a series.
MASH is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
