Download or read book Bastard Battalion written by Terry Lowry and published by . This book was released on 2018-06-28 with total page 610 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spending 508 days in combat, the 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion fought on 2 continents and participated in 6 campaigns. Their firepower was felt in Sicily, Italy, France, Germany, and Austria. Places such as Gela, San Pietro, Ceppagna, Anzio, Minturno, Venafro, Briancon, the Vosges, Colmar Pocket, Zellenberg, and Riquewihr saw them at their best.
Download or read book Saipan written by Bruce M. Petty and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2016-05-01 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The battle for Saipan is remembered as one of the bloodiest battles fought in the Pacific during World War II, and was a turning point on the road to the defeat of Japan. In this work, the survivors--including Pacific Islanders on whose land the Americans and Japanese fought their war--have the opportunity to tell their stories in their own words. The author offers an introduction to the volume and arranges the oral histories by location--Saipan, Yap and Tinian, Rota, Palau Islands, and Guam--in the first half, and by branch of service in the second half.
Download or read book The Bastard Brigade written by Sam Kean and published by Little, Brown. This book was released on 2019-07-09 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From New York Times bestselling author Sam Kean comes the gripping, untold story of a renegade group of scientists and spies determined to keep Adolf Hitler from obtaining the ultimate prize: a nuclear bomb. Scientists have always kept secrets. But rarely have the secrets been as vital as they were during World War II. In the middle of building an atomic bomb, the leaders of the Manhattan Project were alarmed to learn that Nazi Germany was far outpacing the Allies in nuclear weapons research. Hitler, with just a few pounds of uranium, would have the capability to reverse the entire D-Day operation and conquer Europe. So they assembled a rough and motley crew of geniuses -- dubbed the Alsos Mission -- and sent them careening into Axis territory to spy on, sabotage, and even assassinate members of Nazi Germany's feared Uranium Club. The details of the mission rival the finest spy thriller, but what makes this story sing is the incredible cast of characters -- both heroes and rogues alike -- including: Moe Bergm, the major league catcher who abandoned the game for a career as a multilingual international spy; the strangest fellow to ever play professional baseball. Werner Heisenberg, the Nobel Prize-winning physicist credited as the discoverer of quantum mechanics; a key contributor to the Nazi's atomic bomb project and the primary target of the Alsos mission. Colonel Boris Pash, a high school science teacher and veteran of the Russian Revolution who fled the Soviet Union with a deep disdain for Communists and who later led the Alsos mission. Joe Kennedy Jr., the charismatic, thrill-seeking older brother of JFK whose need for adventure led him to volunteer for the most dangerous missions the Navy had to offer. Samuel Goudsmit, a washed-up physics prodigy who spent his life hunting Nazi scientists -- and his parents, who had been swept into a concentration camp -- across the globe. Irène and Frederic Joliot-Curie, a physics Nobel-Prize winning power couple who used their unassuming status as scientists to become active members of the resistance. Thrust into the dark world of international espionage, these scientists and soldiers played a vital and largely untold role in turning back one of the darkest tides in human history.
Download or read book Bristol s Bastards written by Nicholas P. Maurstad and published by Quarto Publishing Group USA. This book was released on 2008-11-15 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Minnesota’s toughest farm boys take on Iraqi insurgents in one of the most irreverent and outrageous memoirs to come out of the Iraq War. When they deployed for Iraq, Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment of the Minnesota National Guard, was mostly composed of farm kids from the Midwest. But make no mistake—these boys could replace a tank track on the side of the road using nothing but a crescent wrench, Zippo lighter, and a two-by-four. Once they arrived, they fought alongside the Marine Corps in Anbar province through the deadliest period of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Bravo Company earned the nickname “Bristol’s Bastards” after USMC Colonel George Bristol, commanding officer of the IMEF Headquarters Group, adopted this band of fierce warriors as one of his own. Specialist Nick Maurstad, a member of Bristol’s Bastards, brings to life the experience of fighting in Iraq: kicking down doors, dodging IEDs, battling insurgents in the small towns surrounding Fallujah, and trying to help one another survive in the deadliest place on earth.
Download or read book Messengers of the Lost Battalion written by Gregory Orfalea and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2010-05-11 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of Before the Flames and the son of a member of the ill-fated infantry battalion discusses America's 551st Battalion and their heroic, little-known role during World War II's Battle of the Bulge.
Download or read book The Color of War written by James Campbell and published by Crown. This book was released on 2012-05-15 with total page 514 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the acclaimed World War II writer and author of The Ghost Mountain Boys, an incisive retelling of the key month, July 1944, that won the war in the pacific and ignited a whole new struggle on the home front. In the pantheon of great World War II conflicts, the battle for Saipan is often forgotten. Yet historian Donald Miller calls it "as important to victory over Japan as the Normandy invasion was to victory over Germany." For the Americans, defeating the Japanese came at a high price. In the words of a Time magazine correspondent, Saipan was "war at its grimmest." On the night of July 17, 1944, as Admirals Ernest King and Chester Nimitz were celebrating the battle's end, the Port Chicago Naval Ammunition Depot, just thirty-five miles northeast of San Francisco, exploded with a force nearly that of an atomic bomb. The men who died in the blast were predominantly black sailors. They toiled in obscurity loading munitions ships with ordnance essential to the US victory in Saipan. Yet instead of honoring the sacrifice these men made for their country, the Navy blamed them for the accident, and when the men refused to handle ammunition again, launched the largest mutiny trial in US naval history. The Color of War is the story of two battles: the one overseas and the one on America's home turf. By weaving together these two narratives for the first time, Campbell paints a more accurate picture of the cataclysmic events that occurred in July 1944--the month that won the war and changed America.
Download or read book Ace written by Ida Francis Traxler and published by Dorrance Publishing. This book was released on 2010-06-27 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book 1901 written by Robert Conroy and published by Presidio Press. This book was released on 2003-12-30 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The year is 1901. Germany’s navy is the second largest in the world; their army, the most powerful. But with the exception of a small piece of Africa and a few minor islands in the Pacific, Germany is without an empire. Kaiser Wilhelm II demands that the United States surrender its newly acquired territories: Guam, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Philippines. President McKinley indignantly refuses, so with the honor and economic future of the Reich at stake, the Kaiser launches an invasion of the United States, striking first on Long Island. Now the Americans, with their army largely disbanded, must defend the homeland. When McKinley suffers a fatal heart attack, the new commander in chief, Theodore Roosevelt, rallies to the cause, along with Confederate general James Longstreet. From the burning of Manhattan to the climactic Battle of Danbury, American forces face Europe’s most potent war machine in a blazing contest of will against strength.
Download or read book Ranger written by Ralph Puckett and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2017-04-11 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On November 25, 1950, during one of the toughest battles of the Korean War, the US Eighth Army Ranger Company seized and held the strategically important Hill 205 overlooking the Chongchon River. Separated by more than a mile from the nearest friendly unit, fifty-one soldiers fought several hundred Chinese attackers. Their commander, Lieutenant Ralph Puckett, was wounded three times before he was evacuated. For his actions, he received the country's second-highest award for courage on the battlefield -- the Distinguished Service Cross -- and resumed active duty later that year as a living legend. In this inspiring autobiography, Colonel Ralph Puckett recounts his extraordinary experiences on and off the battlefield. After he returned from Korea, Puckett joined the newly established US Army Ranger Department, serving as an instructor and tactical officer, and commanding companies at Fort Benning and in the Ranger Mountain Camp in north Georgia. He went on to lead companies in Vietnam, train cadets at West Point, and organize the Escuela de Lancero leadership course in Colombia. Puckett's story is critical reading for soldiers, leaders, military historians, and others interested in the impact of conflict on individual soldiers as well as the military as a whole.
Download or read book The 761st Black Panther Tank Battalion in World War II written by Joe Wilson and published by McFarland. This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Their motto was "Come Out Fighting," and that they did without fail. The 761st Tank Battalion - the famed "Black Panthers" - was the first African American armored unit to enter combat, and in World War II they fought in four major Allied campaigns and inflicted 130,000 casualties on the German army. And the fighting was intense - only one out of every two Black Panthers made it home alive. This is the complete history of the 761st, told in large part through the words of the surviving members of the unit. Richly illustrated, this work recounts how the unit was given long overdue recognition - the Presidential Unit Citation and the Medal of Honor - in recent years.
Download or read book Brothers in Arms written by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and published by Crown. This book was released on 2005-05-10 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A powerful wartime saga recounting the extraordinary story of the 761st Tank Battalion, the first all-black armored unit to see combat in World War II. “More than a combat story . . . it’s also the story of how black soldiers had to fight (literally and figuratively) for the right to fight the Germans.”—USA Today Kareem Abdul-Jabbar first became immersed in the history of the 761st Battalion through family friend Leonard “Smitty” Smith, a veteran of the unit. Working with acclaimed writer Anthony Walton, Abdul-Jabbar interviewed surviving members of the battalion to weave together a page-turning narrative based on their memories, stories, and historical accounts, from basic training through the horrors of the battlefield to their postwar experiences. Trained essentially as a public relations gesture to maintain the support of the black community for the war, the battalion was never intended to see battle. In fact, General Patton originally opposed their deployment, claiming African Americans couldn’t think quickly enough to operate tanks in combatconditions. But in the summer of 1944, following heavy casualties in the fields of France, the Allies—desperate for trained tank personnel—called the battalion up anyway. While most combat troops fought on the front for a week or two before being rotated back, the men of the 761st served for more than six months, fighting heroically under Patton’s Third Army at the Battle of the Bulge and in the Allies’ final drive across France and Germany. Despite a casualty rate that approached 50 percent and an extreme shortage of personnel and equipment, the 761st would ultimately help liberate some thirty towns and villages, as well as several branch concentration camps. The racism that shadowed them during the war and the prejudice they faced upon their return home are an indelible part of their story. Shining through most of all, however, are the lasting bonds that united them as soldiers and brothers, the bravery they exhibited on the battlefield, and the quiet dignity and patriotism that defined their lives.
Download or read book The Magnificent Bastards written by Keith Nolan and published by Presidio Press. This book was released on 2009-10-07 with total page 468 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On April 29, 1968, the North Vietnamese Army is spotted less than four miles from the U.S. Marines’ Dong Ha Combat Base. Intense fighting develops in nearby Dai Do as the 2d Battalion, 4th Marines, known as “the Magnificent Bastards,” struggles to eject NVA forces from this strategic position. Yet the BLT 2/4 Marines defy the brutal onslaught. Pressing forward, America’s finest warriors rout the NVA from their fortress-hamlets–often in deadly hand-to-hand combat. At the end of two weeks of desperate, grinding battles, the Marines and the infantry battalion supporting them are torn to shreds. But against all odds, they beat back their savage adversary. The Magnificent Bastards captures that gripping conflict in all its horror, hell, and heroism. “Superb . . . among the best writing on the Vietnam War . . . Nolan has skillfully woven operational records and oral history into a fascinating narrative that puts the reader in the thick of the action.” –Jon T. Hoffman, author of Chesty “Real and gripping . . . combat with all the warts on.” –Lieutenant General Victor H. Krulak, USMC (Ret.)
Download or read book Soldier s Heart written by William Schroder and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2007-07-30 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Living in the shadowy interior of the brain's limbic system and invisible to the untrained eye, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can not only torture its victims for a lifetime, but reaches beyond victims to negatively influence family members and loved ones. Soldier's Heart, titled after one of the early names for PTSD, delves into the lives of otherwise normal American veterans who, seemingly for no reason, display lasting patterns of bad choices and erratic, self-destructive behavior. Analysis of the life portraits of combat veterans brings the myriad symptoms of PTSD to light, equipping the lay reader to recognize the disorder and gain a thorough understanding that can be the foundation for steps to facilitate healing. Four men and one woman who served in Vietnam describe how PTSD still tears at their lives 30 years later. The symptoms of PTSD are conveyed in non-technical language by the veterans featured in this absorbing work, presented by authors Schroder and Dawe, both Vietnam veterans and, respectively, now a writer-businessman and a mental health counselor. To fully explore the lifelong effects of war trauma in the 20th century, the focus must be on Vietnam veterans, explain Schroder and Dawe. Profound statements on the human condition, the narratives of the five featured veterans, from across branches of the military, offer emotional and intellectual comfort to millions of Americans whose relatives and friends have served the country in time of war. This book, which also includes a glossary of military terms, will be of interest to veterans and their families, as well as to counselors, therapists, psychologists, veteran care workers and students of studies in trauma, psychopthology, and treatment. These are more than war stories, because for these veterans the lingering war is internal—and it may never end.
Download or read book It s Been Fun written by Harlan Rogers and published by Dog Ear Publishing. This book was released on 2009-02 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It's Been Fun is the autobiography of Dr. Harlan Rogers, a well-known Mississippi cattleman and retired dentist. Born in 1929, Harlan gives a first hand account of conditions during his childhood and the trials many families faced as they struggled to survive the Great Depression and its hardships. His entertaining and educational anecdotes transport the reader to another era when people worked together to achieve common goals and hard work was a way of life. Harlan describes the skill and discipline of the old muleskinner as he and his crew harvest virgin timber in rural Covington County, Mississippi, using only a few simple tools and well-trained oxen and mules. He tells of the community's willingness to share during times of need. Harlan discusses his favorite activities as a youth, many based on his love for nature and simple pleasures such as hayrides and afternoon trips to the swimming hole. The work ethic and sense of community instilled in Harlan during his early years made him an outstanding soldier as he proudly served his country during World War II and the Korean War. His stories of battle are thought provoking as he describes the horrors of war and the thrill of victory. His account of the battle for Pork Chop Hill and the loss of his best friend are moving reminders of the sacrifice all American veterans have made. After serving in the army, Harlan returned to the United States to become a successful dentist in his hometown. He shares some rather amusing stories of almost forty years in dentistry. He also offers insight into how he built a successful Charolais cattle ranch from the ground up. Harlan and his wife of over fifty years, Dorotheann Murphree Rogers, have worked together to become prominent business owners. He presents his thoughts on the importance of community involvement and some valuable lessons he has learned as a member of various local, state, and national boards. Also sprinkled in the book are humorous stories about raising four sons and tips for parenting. Harlan also devotes a chapter to what he calls "thoughts that clutter my brain." Because of the long and productive life he has enjoyed, it is appropriate he has chosen to call his first publication It's Been Fun.
Download or read book My Side of the Story written by G. W Collier; J C Johnson and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2012-03-07 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: My Side of the Story shares a narrative of G. Warren Collier’s World War II experiences in the western European theater, as told to his daughter, Judy Collier Johnson. He shares the intimate detail of what it was like to be in the army during World War II through a series of letters and recollections. PCollier, a young man from a simple Iowa farm, found himself in an army plagued by rules and regulations. After advanced training at Camp Roberts, California, in the desert, he received his marching orders and was sent first to England and then to Omaha Beach. My Side of the Story paints a picture of lives of everyday soldiers during World War II and the joys and heartaches they shared.
Download or read book D Day in the Pacific written by Harold J. Goldberg and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2007-05-02 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The narrative moves smoothly and crisply. There is effective treatment of strategy, preparations, and then the invasion and battle for Saipan itself.” —Spencer C. Tucker, author of American Revolution In June 1944 the attention of the nation was riveted on events unfolding in France. But in the Pacific, the Battle of Saipan was of extreme strategic importance. This is a gripping account of one of the most dramatic engagements of World War II. The conquest of Saipan and the neighboring island of Tinian was a turning point in the war in the Pacific as it made the American victory against Japan inevitable. Until this battle, the Japanese continued to believe that success in the war remained possible. While Japan had suffered serious setbacks as early as the Battle of Midway in 1942, Saipan was part of her inner defense line, so victory was essential. The American victory at Saipan forced Japan to begin considering the reality of defeat. For the Americans, the capture of Saipan meant secure air bases for the new B-29s that were now within striking distance of all Japanese cities, including Tokyo. “Harold Goldberg’s riveting story of this conflict brings the dead back to life by blending rigorous research with dramatic narratives by hundreds of survivors. He has written a superb account of a pivotal, little-known, and heart-breaking battle.” —Col. Joseph H. Alexander, USMC (ret.),author of Storm Landings “Using recent interviews he conducted with extant US veterans, [Goldberg] skillfully develops the soldiers’ view of the battle for Saipan in an engaging, clearly written and interesting volume.” —The Journal of Military History
Download or read book Bristol s Bastards written by Nicholas P. Maurstad and published by Zenith Press. This book was released on 2008-11-14 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spec. Nicholas Maurstad brings to life the experience of fighting in Iraq with Bravo Company, kicking down doors, dodging IEDs, battling insurgents, and trying to survive.
