[sevenmalards]

I just wanted to recommend a book to all of you military guys, especially MARINES!

I just got done reading "with the old breed, at Peleliu and Okinawa"
written by Eugene B. Sledgehammer" Sledge

It is about his front line accounts of the of the bloodiest island invasions of World War II.

I was so moved while reading this book about the esprit de corp of the Marines that it almost made me regret joining the army!

Even if your not a big "book reader" if your interested in military history then you need to read this book.

Here are a couple of quotes:

" Everything my life had been before and has been after pales in the light of that awesome moment when my amtrac started in amid a thunderous bombardment toward the flaming, smoke-shrouded beach for the assault on Peleliu."

"H-hour, 0800. Long jets of red flame mixed with thick black smoke rushed out of the muzzles of the huge battleships' 16-inch guns with a noise like a thunderclap. The giant shells tore through the air toward the island, roaring like locomotives"

"We moved ahead, watching the frightful spectacle. Huge geysers of water rose around the amtracs ahead of us as they approached the reef. The beach was now marked along its length by a continuous sheet of flame backed by a thick wall of smoke. It seemed as though a huge volcano had erupted from the sea, and rather than heading for an island, we were being drawn into the vortex of a flaming abyss. For many it was to be oblivion. The lieutenant braced himself and pulled out a half-pint whiskey bottle. "This is it, boys" he yelled. Just like they do in the movies! It seemed unreal."


Here is a quote from his Okinawa campaign:
"We prepared to cross. The Nambu kept firing down the smoke-covered draw. I was reluctant to go, as were the others, but we could see Redifer standing out in the draw, throwing more phosphorus grenades to hide us. I felt like a coward. My buddies must have felt the same way as we glanced anxiously at each other. Someone said resignedly, "lets go, on the double, and keep your five-pace interval."
We dashed into the smoky, murky air. I lowered my head and gritted my teeth as the machine-gun slugs snapped and zipped around us. I expected to get hit. So did the others. I wasn't being brave, but Redifer was, and I would rather take my chances than be yellow in the face of his risks to screen us. If he got hit while I was cringing in safety, I knew it would haunt me the rest of my life-that is, if I lived much longer, which seemed more unlikely every day."