Tying in to the HBO series The Pacific, I finally got to read one of the books part of the series was based on. Having read a book (Chesty) a few years back, I learned about a battle few had ever heard of, the fight for Peleliu. The account in Chesty was far more technical in it's telling. While it gave a very good insight of what went down, With The Old Breed gives you a telling view of the true horror of Pacific combat for the average Joe.
E B Sledge is in no way a gifted writer, but he didn't need to be to put down the graphic reality of his time in K 3/5. He does what so few have, told the entire story. Not just the normal details of the campaigns he was involved in, but brings to light the gory details of what these brave young men endured. Things you and I would never think of. His manner of telling it is almost cold and surgical while still having emotion.
If you have any interest in a startling view of the Pacific theater of WWII, I highly recommend this book. The HBO series couldn't even begin to tell the story, and had they reproduced visually some of his accounts, it wouldn't be fit for viewing by most people.
Again, I'll never take away any admiration, or appreciation for those that served in Europe, but the Pacific war was completely on another level. Some said they couldn't connect with the characters in this series compared to band of brothers. Simply speaking, the men who fought in the Pacific got chewed up and spit out far faster due to the closer, more intense combat against a barbaric fanatical foe.
E B Sledge is in no way a gifted writer, but he didn't need to be to put down the graphic reality of his time in K 3/5. He does what so few have, told the entire story. Not just the normal details of the campaigns he was involved in, but brings to light the gory details of what these brave young men endured. Things you and I would never think of. His manner of telling it is almost cold and surgical while still having emotion.
If you have any interest in a startling view of the Pacific theater of WWII, I highly recommend this book. The HBO series couldn't even begin to tell the story, and had they reproduced visually some of his accounts, it wouldn't be fit for viewing by most people.
Again, I'll never take away any admiration, or appreciation for those that served in Europe, but the Pacific war was completely on another level. Some said they couldn't connect with the characters in this series compared to band of brothers. Simply speaking, the men who fought in the Pacific got chewed up and spit out far faster due to the closer, more intense combat against a barbaric fanatical foe.