NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - "Eugene Sledge became more than a legend with his memoir, With The Old Breed . He became a chronicler, a historian, a storyteller who turns the extremes of the war in the Pacific--the terror, the camaraderie, the banal and the extraordinary--into terms we mortals can grasp."--Tom Hanks In The Wall Street Journal , Victor Davis Hanson named With the Old Breed one of the top five books on epic twentieth-century battles. Studs Terkel interviewed the author for his definitive oral history, ...
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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - "Eugene Sledge became more than a legend with his memoir, With The Old Breed . He became a chronicler, a historian, a storyteller who turns the extremes of the war in the Pacific--the terror, the camaraderie, the banal and the extraordinary--into terms we mortals can grasp."--Tom Hanks In The Wall Street Journal , Victor Davis Hanson named With the Old Breed one of the top five books on epic twentieth-century battles. Studs Terkel interviewed the author for his definitive oral history, The Good War . Now E. B. Sledge's acclaimed first-person account of fighting at Peleliu and Okinawa returns to thrill, edify, and inspire a new generation. An Alabama boy steeped in American history and enamored of such heroes as George Washington and Daniel Boone, Eugene B. Sledge became part of the war's famous 1st Marine Division--3rd Battalion, 5th Marines. Even after intense training, he was shocked to be thrown into the battle of Peleliu, where "the world was a nightmare of flashes, explosions, and snapping bullets." By the time Sledge hit the hell of Okinawa, he was a combat vet, still filled with fear but no longer with panic. Based on notes Sledge secretly kept in a copy of the New Testament, With the Old Breed captures with utter simplicity and searing honesty the experience of a soldier in the fierce Pacific Theater. Here is what saved, threatened, and changed his life. Here, too, is the story of how he learned to hate and kill--and came to love--his fellow man. "In all the literature on the Second World War, there is not a more honest, realistic or moving memoir than Eugene Sledge's. This is the real deal, the real war: unvarnished, brutal, without a shred of sentimentality or false patriotism, a profound primer on what it actually was like to be in that war. It is a classic that will outlive all the armchair generals' safe accounts of--not the 'good war'--but the worst war ever."--Ken Burns
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Add this copy of With the Old Breed: at Peleliu and Okinawa to cart. $3.59, very good condition, Sold by HPB-Ruby rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2007 by Presidio Press.
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Add this copy of With the Old Breed: at Peleliu and Okinawa to cart. $4.49, very good condition, Sold by Half Price Books Inc rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2007 by Presidio Press.
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"Into the Abyss" was the working title for E.B. Sledge's memoir "With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa" (1981) which chronicle the author's fighting experience as a private in the Marines during WW II, The son of an Alabama physician and a college dean of women students, Sledge served as an enlisted man with Company K, 3d Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division during the Peleliu Campaign of September 1944 and the Okinawa Campaign from April -- June, 1945. He acquired the nickname Sledgehammer. Sledge took notes of his experiences during his service and ultimately worked his notes into this book. The book was used as source material for a Ken Burns documentary on WW II, and for an HBO miniseries on the War in the Pacific. Following his return to civilian life, Sledge (1923 -- 2001) became a professor of biology. His memoir has gone through several editions, and I have read it in a Library of America volume World War II Memoirs: the Pacific Theater" (2021) edited by Elizabeth Samet. I was interested in Sledge's book because I had the good fortune to visit Palau, (but not Peleliu) and other Pacific Islands during my career. My knowledge of the Peleliu Campaign and of the War in the Pacific, alas, is minimal. I would have benefited from a broader knowledge during my working life.
"Sledgehamer" Sledge writes simply and clearly and with emotion. In the Preface, he writes that his memoir "is not a history and it is not my story alone. I have attempted, rather, to be the spokesman for my comrades who were swept with me into the abyss of war. I hope they will approve my efforts."
Thus, Sledge's account focuses on his own experiences in the War rather than on a larger strategical or tactical account. He describes his own activities and feelings and his relationship to his fellow marines and officers and his encounters with the enemy. It is not a pretty story as Sledge describes the brutality of combat on both Peleliu and Okinawa, the heat, the mud and rain, and the terrible loss of life both for the Americans and for the Japanese whose forces were annihilated on both islands. Sledge shows the reader the topography of the islands and how it contributed to the severity of the fighting. Sledge includes supplemental material, printed in italics, from published sources giving context to his individual account. The book also includes a large section of photographs. The tone of the book is bleak but it emphasizes Sledge's love for his comrades and his patriotism for the United States.
Part I of the memoir "Peleliu: A Neglected Battle" tells Sledgehammer's story from basic training through D-day on Peleliu through the conclusion of the campaign. Part II. "Okinawa: The Final Triumph" begins with a period of rest following Peleliu and continues through Sledge's experiences and travails on the southern part of Okinawa with the ultimate destruction of the large Japanese force and the loss of many American lives. Following Okinawa, the United States made the decision to use atomic bombs on Japan rather than to engage in a costly land invasion, a decision that remains controversial.
Sledge concludes his memoir with a discussion of the both the brutality of the war and of his love for his comrades and for America which is worth quoting in full. He writes
"War is brutish, inglorious, and a terrible waste. Combat leaves an indelible mark on those who are forced to endure it. The only redeeming factors were my comrades' incredible bravery and their devotion to each other. Marine Corps training taught us to kill efficiently and to try to survive. But it also taught us loyalty to each other -- and love. That esprit de corps sustained us. "
"Until the millennium arrives and countries cease trying to enslave others, it will be necessary to accept one's responsibilities and to be willing to make sacrifices for one's country -- as my comrades did. As the troops used to say, 'If the country is good enough to live in, it's good enough to fight for.' With privilege goes responsibility."
I was moved by Sledgehammer's Sledge's story in "With the Old Breed". I learned something about the War in the Pacific. More importantly, I was reminded about the nature of comradeship and about the precious, frail character of the American experiment.
Robin Friedman
Charles
Sep 14, 2015
Great Book
After viewing HBO'S, "The Pacific," I decided to read the four books it was based on.
This is E. Sledge's story of his experience in the Pacific theater. It states that he wrote this for his family and never intended it to be published, so I expect that it is true to his memory and not embellished.
Thousands of American lives were sacrificed and millions of lives were changed during WWII. The battles fought on Peleliu and Okinawa changed history. E.B. Sledge wrote about his experiences fighting these battles from the standpoint of an enlisted Marine. He brings forth the horrors and waste of war, even though necessary to preserve a way of life. If you ever thought war was glorious, this book will change your opinion. A "must read" for those who want a better understanding of what the "Greatest Generation" did for America.
lmsl1144
Mar 31, 2011
great buy
this is an excellent book. if you are into wwII you will love this book. it gives a very detailed description of a marines life in the pacific
