Bugles and a Tiger

John Masters grippingly tells of his life as a newly commissioned Subaltern in a Gurkha regiment, warts, and all. This book is especially valuable to new infantry platoon commanders, or anyone interested in the challenges of leading at the lowest levels. Masters is a consummate storyteller who takes the reader along with him in his personal journey of discovery as he learns about life, leadership, and the nature of war.

This is one of the most evocative accounts of service by a British officer in the old, pre-partition Indian Army. It has rightly become a classic of this period of history, which comes to its denouement in Burma in 1945. Masters, who became a best-selling author after the war, beautifully captures the nature of the great Indian Army as its marches into history following its smashing of the Japanese in Burma.