This new and meticulously researched biography of the controversial American commander Joe Stilwell presents an admirably lucid account of his career and the complex story of the campaign in Burma. Stilwell spent most of WWII as Chiang Kai-Shek's chief of staff in China. He was often at odds with the British generals Wavell, Slim and Wingate, men with whom he was to co-operate in Burma. These arguments earned him the nickname of Vinegar' Joe. This sympathetic but critical biography analyses the passions of an American patriot, infuriated by Chiang's dishonesty and chicanery, and looks at the possible outcome if Stilwell's views had prevailed.