Oblivion (P)

by Harry J. Maihafer

Book Overview

On Saturday, January 14, 1950, at 6:18 p.m., Cadet Richard Cox left his room at the U. S. Military Academy at West Point. Cox never returned. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1574882244
• ISBN13: 9781574882247
• Release Date: December 1999
• Publisher: Potomac Books
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Fascinating story marred by unconvincing "conclusion."

I've been interested in the Richard Cox mystery since I was very little and read about it in LIFE magazine in 1950 and then a few years later in CORONET. From time to time over the years I would research the topic hoping for new information. I'd almost given up until I came across this book , containing lots of details never before disclosed. Unfortunately, as mentioned in some of the above reviews, the proposed "solution" at the end is thoroughly unconvincing.

Interesting case

As a graduate of West Point I had never heard of this case, of course the Academy covering things up is not unheard of. I also recommend another novel about West Point titled THE LINE by another graduate.

Can be read in 5 hours......because you can't put it down!

As a West Point graduate (1984) I often receive gifts from friends and family that reflect this association. This is how I came to have a copy of Oblivion in the first place. I had heard about this book being written, but as a cadet had never heard ANY stories like this at all. I got the impression after reading Oblivion that this is probably the way the Academy would prefer things to be. The authors painstakingly detail the events leading up to Cadet Cox's disappearance. Their description of cadet life and the environment behind the grey granite walls at the academy is excellent. As one of the authors is himself a graduate, he had walked a mile or two in 'our' moccasins. As a previous reviewer has mentioned, the ending could have been more detailed. I felt a little let down by the "well, and that's the end" way the book concluded. Still a very interesting read. So interesting that I began at 1 am and closed it up tight by 6 am.

Definitely a "must read" . . .

This book first came to my attention after reading a book review in the Washington Post last fall. West Point cadet Richard Cox left the campus on the evening of January 14, 1950 to go to dinner with an unidentified visitor. He was never heard from again. Neither the military nor the FBI could solve the mystery of Cox's disappearance. Cox was declared dead seven years later. Harry J. Maihafer, a retired historian, took on the task of finding out what happened to Richard Cox after receiving a telephone call from a man identifying himself as a retired history teacher. This book is the result of Maihafer's investigation. Mr. Maihafer has written a story that rivals the best mystery fiction. I read this book in a weekend, unable to put it down. It is thoroughly researched and documented, convincing, and written in a manner that makes you anxious to find out how the stroy ends. I was a little disappointed that the ending was not more detailed, but circumstances did not permit it. If Mr. Maihafer pens another masterfully crafted tale of mystery, I will be the first in line to read it