Book of the Week

I read With the Old Breed this past week. Over the years I have read dozens of military history books. This particular volume by E. B. Sledge probably exudes the spirit and pathos of war from the perspective of a Marine Corps Private more than any I have ever read. I felt I could hear and smell the things going on during the battles of Peleliu and Okinawa. Anyone interested in the military and particularly WWII in the Pacific ought to read this book. You can find a bit of the biography of the author here. This story of men and horror is interlaced with realistic descriptions of battlefield encounters, with the politics of the time as understood by young Marines, and with the racial tension between the American GI and the Japanese soldier. This tension was palpable throughout the book with an apologetic tone as viewed with the passage of time. Sledge took notes when able during the battles on slips of paper, and outlined and refined the stories for a family history later in life. His family urged him to publish his book and we have this classic. You will not be sorry spending some of your time in this book.