After reading this book, THE UNTRAINABLE PRIVATE BAKER, you will certainly conclude that our protagonist wins the record for being the U.S. Army's worst misfit ever. From the time Private Baker enters and completes 16 weeks of Basic Training to his unsuccessful stint at OCS to his front line duty in Korea, he is involved in all sorts of fouled-up situations almost on a daily basis. The commandant of Fort Dix is the unfortunate victim of Baker's ineptitude. On the parade grounds where Baker shows how inept he is on taking marching commends, his failure to perform the "present arms" command results on his dropping his rifle on the inspecting commandant's foot, breaking his toe. Later on at the rifle range, one of his shots goes awry and grazes the head of the same commanding officer. His problems escalate as the colonel has him tried before a court-martial tribunal for attempted murder. Even when punished and assigned to KP, he finds trouble in the mess hall when he slips carrying a pan of boiling grease and spills it on both the mess sergeant and his assistant chef, causing both to need emergency medical attention. When trying to master the obstacle course, he fails to follow directions and gets caught under a roll of barbed wire. At OCS, when on a compass exercise in the Okefenokee Swamp, he gets lost until he is rescued late at night after the other cadets have successfully completed their mission. In Korea, he is captured while on guard at a listening post. A Major in the Chinese army calls out on a loud speaker, begging the Americans to take "the idiot back with no strings attached." The Major complains that Baker is driving him crazy and is responsible for lowering the morale of his men. Such are just a few examples of why Private Alfred Thomas Baker 'wins the medal' for being our country's worst soldier ever, even though he survives the Korean War, and as a decorated hero to boot through circumstances you will find hard to believe.