Letters from the Greatest Generation

Letters from the Greatest Generation
Author: Howard H. Peckham
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2016-10-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 0253024609

A collection of personal letters from overseas that reveal in day-to-day detail what it was like to serve in World War II. Recounting victory and defeat, love and loss, this is a remarkable and frank collection of World War II letters penned by American men and women serving overseas. Here, the hopes and dreams of the greatest generation fill each page, and their voices ring loud and clear. “It’s all part of the game but it’s bloody and rough,” writes one soldier to his wife. “Wearing two stripes now and as proud as an old cat with five kittens,” remarks another. Yet, as many countries rejoiced on V-E Day, this book reveals that soldiers were “too tired and sad to celebrate.” Filled with the everyday thoughts of these fighters, the letters are by turns heartbreaking and amusing, revealing and frightening. While visiting a German concentration camp, one man wrote, “I don’t like Army life but I’m glad we are here to stop these atrocities.” Meanwhile, in another letter a soldier quips, “I know lice don’t crawl so I figured they were fleas.” A fitting tribute to all veterans, this book brings the experience of war—its dramatic horrors, its dreary hardships, its desperate hope for a better future—to vivid life. “An intimate portrait of the mundane and remarkable, of heroism and terror, of friendship and loss . . . Timely, compelling, and important reading.”—Matthew L. Basso, author of Men at Work

The Greatest Generation Speaks

The Greatest Generation Speaks
Author: Tom Brokaw
Publisher: Random House
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2000-03-08
Genre: History
ISBN: 037550463X

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A heartwarming gift for the holidays—a powerful selection of the letters Tom Brokaw received in response to his towering #1 bestseller The Greatest Generation. “When I wrote about the men and women who came out of the Depression, who won great victories and made lasting sacrifices in World War II and then returned home to begin building the world we have today—the people I called the Greatest Generation—it was my way of saying thank you. But I was not prepared for the avalanche of letters and responses touched off by that book. I had written a book about America, and now America was writing back.”—Tom Brokaw In the phenomenal bestseller The Greatest Generation, Tom Brokaw paid affecting tribute to those who gave the world so much—and who left an enduring legacy of courage and conviction. The Greatest Generation Speaks collects the vast outpouring of letters Brokaw received from men and women eager to share their intensely personal stories of a momentous time in America’s history. Some letters tell of the front during the war, others recall loved ones in harm’s way in distant places. They offer first-hand accounts of battles, poignant reflections on loneliness, exuberant expressions of love, and somber feelings of loss. As Brokaw notes, “If we are to heed the past to prepare for the future, we should listen to these quiet voices of a generation that speaks to us of duty and honor, sacrifice and accomplishment. I hope more of their stories will be preserved and cherished as reminders of all that we owe them and all that we can learn from them.”

The Greatest Generation

The Greatest Generation
Author: Tom Brokaw
Publisher: Random House
Total Pages: 464
Release: 2000-02-23
Genre: History
ISBN: 0375504621

The instant classic that changed the way we saw World War II and an entire generation of Americans, from the beloved journalist whose own iconic career has lasted more than fifty years. In this magnificent testament to a nation and her people, Tom Brokaw brings to life the extraordinary stories of a generation that gave new meaning to courage, sacrifice, and honor. From military heroes to community leaders to ordinary citizens, he profiles men and women who served their country with valor, then came home and transformed it: Senator Daniel Inouye, decorated at the front, fighting prejudice at home; Martha Settle Putney, one of the first black women to serve in the newly formed WACs; Charles Van Gorder, a doctor who set up a MASH-like medical facility in the middle of battle, then opened a small clinic in his hometown; Navy pilot and future president George H. W. Bush, assigned to read the mail of the enlisted men under him, who says that in doing so he “learned about life”; and many other laudable Americans. To this generation that gave so much and asked so little, Brokaw offers eloquent tribute in true stories of everyday heroes in extraordinary times. Praise for The Greatest Generation “Moving . . . a tribute to the members of the World War II generation to whom we Americans and the world owe so much.”—The New York Times Book Review “Full of wonderful, wrenching tales of a generation of heroes. Tom Brokaw reminds us what we are capable of as a people. An inspiring read for those who wish their spirits lifted.”—Colin L. Powell “Offers welcome inspiration . . . It is impossible to read even a few of these accounts and not be touched by the book’s overarching message: We who followed this generation have lived in the midst of greatness.”—The Washington Times “Entirely compelling.”—The Wall Street Journal

World War II Letters

World War II Letters
Author: Bill Adler
Publisher: Macmillan
Total Pages: 278
Release: 2003-11-29
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780312304317

A collection of letters from the Allied soldiers who fought and won World War II reveals the horror, humor, and boredom of this great conflict.

An Album of Memories

An Album of Memories
Author: Tom Brokaw
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Total Pages: 401
Release: 2002-04-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 0375760415

“I cannot go anywhere in America without people wanting to share their wartime experiences....The stories and the lessons have emerged from long-forgotten letters home, from reunions of old buddies and outfits, from unpublished diaries and home-published memoirs....As the stories in this album of memories remind us, it truly was an American experience, from the centers of power to the most humble corners of the land.” —Tom Brokaw In this beautiful American family album of stories from the Greatest Generation, the history of life as it was lived during the Depression and World War II comes alive and is preserved in people’s own words. Photographs and time lines also commemorate important dates and events. An Army Air Corps veteran who enlisted in 1941 at age seventeen writes to describe the Bataan Death March. A black nurse tells of her encounter with wartime segregation. Other members of the Greatest Generation describe their war—in such historic episodes as Guadalcanal, the D-Day invasion, the Battle of the Bulge, and Midway—as well as their lives on the home front. Starting with the Depression and Pearl Harbor, moving on through the war years in Europe, in the Pacific, and at home, this unique book preserves a people’s rich historical heritage and the legacy of a nation’s heroism in war and its courage in peace—in the shaping of their lives and of the world we have today.

War Letters

War Letters
Author: Andrew Carroll
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 518
Release: 2008-06-23
Genre: History
ISBN: 1439107319

In 1998, Andrew Carroll founded the Legacy Project, with the goal of remembering Americans who have served their nation and preserving their letters for posterity. Since then, over 50,000 letters have poured in from around the country. Nearly two hundred of them comprise this amazing collection -- including never-before-published letters that appear in the new afterword. Here are letters from the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, the Cold War, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf war, Somalia, and Bosnia -- dramatic eyewitness accounts from the front lines, poignant expressions of love for family and country, insightful reflections on the nature of warfare. Amid the voices of common soldiers, marines, airmen, sailors, nurses, journalists, spies, and chaplains are letters by such legendary figures as Gen. William T. Sherman, Clara Barton, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernie Pyle, Gen. Douglas MacArthur, Julia Child, Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, and Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Sr. Collected in War Letters, they are an astonishing historical record, a powerful tribute to those who fought, and a celebration of the enduring power of letters.

Love Letters from World War II

Love Letters from World War II
Author: Russell Dalton
Publisher:
Total Pages: 275
Release: 2020
Genre:
ISBN: 9781650156620

What would you write to your young wife when you enlist in the Army to fight the Nazis during World War II? This book tells that story. Bob Dalton wrote a series of almost daily letters home during his service from 1944-1946. This is not a book of combat exploits, but a true life story of what it meant to have a wife and baby at home while serving your country in WWII--and the burden it placed on GIs and their families. The letters frankly discuss the challenges of life because they were only intended to be read by his wife. We found this trove of letters along with hundreds of original photos that illustrate the book after our mother passed away in 2018. We felt that we should share their story. Each letter begins and ends with his love for his family that he left behind to fight. He shares his experiences in boot camp in South Carolina, the trip to the front, crossing the Rhine with Patton's Third Army, and then battling to the Czech border by war's end. His mission changed to demilitarization and denazification until the Russians occupied Saxony as part of East Germany. Then he spent a year as part of the Allied occupation forces in Frankfurt dealing with postwar reconstruction and the U.S. Army bureaucracy. The war changed our father, and reading these letters changed our image of him and the other members of the Greatest Generation.

A Secret Gift

A Secret Gift
Author: Ted Gup
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 258
Release: 2010-10-28
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1101444630

An inspiring account of America at its worst-and Americans at their best-woven from the stories of Depression-era families who were helped by gifts from the author's generous and secretive grandfather. Shortly before Christmas 1933 in Depression-scarred Canton, Ohio, a small newspaper ad offered $10, no strings attached, to 75 families in distress. Interested readers were asked to submit letters describing their hardships to a benefactor calling himself Mr. B. Virdot. The author's grandfather Sam Stone was inspired to place this ad and assist his fellow Cantonians as they prepared for the cruelest Christmas most of them would ever witness. Moved by the tales of suffering and expressions of hope contained in the letters, which he discovered in a suitcase 75 years later, Ted Gup initially set out to unveil the lives behind them, searching for records and relatives all over the country who could help him flesh out the family sagas hinted at in those letters. From these sources, Gup has re-created the impact that Mr B. Virdot's gift had on each family. Many people yearned for bread, coal, or other necessities, but many others received money from B. Virdot for more fanciful items-a toy horse, say, or a set of encyclopedias. As Gup's investigations revealed, all these things had the power to turn people's lives around- even to save them. But as he uncovered the suffering and triumphs of dozens of strangers, Gup also learned that Sam Stone was far more complex than the lovable- retiree persona he'd always shown his grandson. Gup unearths deeply buried details about Sam's life-from his impoverished, abusive upbringing to felonious efforts to hide his immigrant origins from U.S. officials-that help explain why he felt such a strong affinity to strangers in need. Drawing on his unique find and his award-winning reportorial gifts, Ted Gup solves a singular family mystery even while he pulls away the veil of eight decades that separate us from the hardships that united America during the Depression. In A Secret Gift, he weaves these revelations seamlessly into a tapestry of Depression-era America, which will fascinate and inspire in equal measure. Watch a Video

A Letter Marked Free

A Letter Marked Free
Author: Robert Lynch
Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing
Total Pages: 218
Release: 2010-05
Genre: World War, 1939-1945
ISBN: 1608444198

A Letter Marked Free is the true story of a young combat soldier on the battlefield in World War II as told through his letters home to his family. The letters powerfully portray life on the front lines and the vivid accounts reveal the intense hardships endured for the cause of freedom. Bob Lynch was nineteen and living in Rye, NY, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in the 3rd Infantry Division as a combat rifleman, light machine-gunner, and mortarman. Bob was wounded and missing in action (MIA) behind enemy lines for over 10 days. He received the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Infantryman Badge, along with many other honors. He participated in first-wave amphibious assault landings on Anzio, Italy, and St. Tropez, France, and accumulated an incredible 350 days in frontline combat. Bob was awarded the French Legion of Honor in January 2007 in recognition and gratitude for his role in the liberation of France. He received France's highest decoration "for outstanding valor and service during WWII." Previously, he had been awarded the French Croix de Guerre with Palm twice and coveted fourragere. Experience living conditions in a foxhole, go on patrol behind enemy lines, cross minefields, hold your buddy as his life ebbs away, wade through icy water in the dead of winter, and crawl on your belly directly into machine-gun fire. Witness the pent-up emotions as U.S. soldiers free one French town after another. Hear church bells chime their message of freedom and watch people pour into the streets. Drink wine, laugh, dance, hug, and cry with them. Realize that you probably won't make it home alive and pray to God and your guardian angel every day that you do. Read the chilling letters of a combat infantryman soldier in WWII who continuously faced death and survived. This is Bob's courageous story.

A Thousand Letters Home

A Thousand Letters Home
Author: Aarol William Irish
Publisher: ATLH Publications
Total Pages: 565
Release: 2011-12-07
Genre: Camp Maxey (Tex.)
ISBN: 9780983955306

Discovered by Teresa Irish in her father’s Army trunk shortly after his death in 2006, the letters and photographs in this book are a personal record of his experience as a soldier of World War II. Selected from the nearly 1,000 letters addressed to his parents and to the sweetheart who would later become his wife, this firsthand account through the eyes, heart and words of one soldier mirrors the journeys of many who served in WWII. At every opportunity, Bud poured out his thoughts and feelings in these letters, all amidst reassuring words to loved ones a world away. From lonesome, moonlit nights listening to the Hit Parade, to the foxholes and front lines in Germany where he would earn the Silver Star and the Purple Heart, to correspondence from the heartbroken mothers whose sons had died by his side, “A Thousand Letters Home” is a moving and historic story of life and loss, hope and perseverance, unwavering faith and true love.