Lt. Gen. Harold G. Moore and journalist Joe Galloway, who once accompanied Moore into the field, wrote the acclaimed book We Were Soldiers Once … and Young about a battle in the Ia Drang Valley of Vietnam. The book, published in 1992, was a New York Times Bestseller. We don’t often think of our military leaders as writers outside the very narrow realm of treatises on war … Continue reading “We Were Soldiers” and Wielded Pens
By now I imagine and, having done my part, fervently hope, everyone knows 2020 is the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. If not, there’s one more opportunity to catch up on the events, the issues, and the ordinary and extraordinary people who lived through the war years. On August 30, the New York Times devoted its Book Review to books … Continue reading Like Minds — A WWII Reading List
You might not think of our men and women in uniform as “readers,” but you would be wrong. The army, navy, marines, air force, and coast guard all consider reading (and reading widely) as critical for career advancement. Courtesy of DODReads.com, a site dedicated to furthering reading and lifelong learning—especially for those who aspire to a career in the armed forces—you can peruse the list … Continue reading Soldiers as Readers? Indeed.
Georgia Men Among the Crew of the Ill-fated USS Indianapolis in 1945 Seventy-five years ago, only minutes past midnight on July 30, 1945, the Imperial Japanese submarine I-58 launched two torpedoes in the dark waters of the south Pacific. They sped toward the USS Indianapolis striking her in the bow and at midship. The story of what transpired following the attack is well known to navy veterans and WWII historians and … Continue reading The USS Indianapolis + 75 Years
“Rommel, you magnificent bastard, I read your book.” George C. Scott utters those words in a scene from the 1970 film Patton. With that gloating comment, the general reveals to the audience how he defeated the infamous Wehrmacht field marshal. He read his book. I would venture the same goes for almost anything in life including learning about D-Day and the battles waged in Normandy or enhancing a … Continue reading Ten on a Topic: Understanding Normandy
The Neyland home, a bright white house with a long narrow front porch, sits back from the street and is surrounded by the last of spring’s pink and lavender blooms. It’s a quiet street, two blocks off a thoroughfare in Marietta, Georgia, and four thousand miles from where James once stood guard and witnessed the start of the invasion of Normandy on a night in … Continue reading A Witness to the Start of D-Day
Meet Dr. Jean Gilnord Mathurin, medical officer in the United States Navy and firm believer in the power of books. And, keep reading to learn more about the military and its reading recommendations. Dr Mathurin is a Haitian immigrant who raised himself from dishwasher to a US Naval Medical Officer. He shared his perspective on books and what he believes are the keys to success … Continue reading A Military Man Is Mentored through Books
Despite a desire to serve their country in any capacity they could, at the start of the Second World War the military was reluctant to allow blacks to enlist. If they did enlist local draft boards often passed blacks over in favor of white recruits, resulting in fewer than 4,000 black troops and a mere dozen black officers in the ranks in late 1941. Eventually, … Continue reading The King and the War
Sometimes an author’s research takes her to a place she’d rather not go. Still to ensure a book, a story, an article, or a blog post rings true, authors must delve deep behind the scenes, no matter how squeamish the subject matter. As what I call a natural born researcher, I love to dig for the little details that bring a scene to life. For … Continue reading Research for Authors
Another blockbuster from Stephen Ambrose the recognized “dean of history” when it comes to World War II. You might say you don’t need to know this much about one aircraft or one group of men, but open the book anywhere and you won’t put it down. Even if, like me, you are partial to the B-17 (my husband’s father having flown one as does the … Continue reading The Wild Blue
