'A Face Like a Chicken’s Backside': An Unconventional Soldier in South East Asia, 1948-71

By: J P Cross

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Synopsis: The jungle can be seen as the environment closest to mankind’s primaeval origins and the setting in which he, or most of his kind, is least at home. Conflicts in jungle regions pose unique problems and demand special soldiering skills. J.P. Cross was an officer with the Gurkhas for 38 years in Asia, 10 of them spent ‘under the jungle canopy’. There, he accrued a wealth of knowledge and experience, particularly in fighting against Communist revolutionaries, and went on to train other soldiers in the art of guerrilla warfare. From first-hand experience of company operations in the jungle, intertwined with fascinating elements from his own life story, J.P. Cross uses his unrivalled breadth of knowledge to impart a very personal account of armed conflict in the jungle. This volume offers the perfect blend of factual military history and the empathetic, subjective recollection of a skilled and internationally admired practitioner. Peppered with lucid and humorous comment, it will provide every reader with a new understanding of this very special military discipline.