With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa

The Old Breed Got it Done

Sledge carried his war experiences around with him for decades before he was able to rehash his experiences, assisted by notes he wrote in the pages of his Bible. He wrote With the Old Breed as a sort of explanation to his family of what he went through. Luckily for the rest of us, it got published--all the grit, blood, death and fear of the battles for Peleliu and Okinawa. It wasn't uncommon for young men of his generation to volunteer for service the day after Pearl Harbor (not that many waited to be drafted, and almost nobody dodged the draft in those days), or as soon as they came of age. Sledge waited a year before enlisting, went through training as a mortarman and arrived just in time for the battle of Peleliu. Sledge witnessed a whole lot, none of it glorious. In short, he saw combat bring out the best and worst of human nature, and you'll see it, too, through his eyes. Some war veterans tend to gloss over the horrific gore of combat, particularly veterans of WWII, but Eugene Sledge holds nothing back. Perhaps that's why many reviewers consider this the best war memoir written. I highly recommend this book.

10 out of 10 people found this review helpful.

Great Personal Emotional of War from a soldiers POV

The book gives you a personal insight of the Pacific war front from a soldier who lived a breathed all the experiences that impacted his life. The experience and emotion is passed on to the reader in a way that helps you better understand how difficult life was for these heros.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

For everyone.

No doubt the greatest book I have ever read. Leaving no emotion untouched, Sledge strips away any notion of glory in battle. I understand war is brutal and senseless, but I now have a new outlook that reinforces that opinion. Should be read by students and anyone who wants to join the military. Praise those who were forced to endure battle. No one can fully grasp the experience, without being there. I do know that I would be very reluctant to.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

When There Were Men...

This is the best first person book on the Pacific war in World War Two that I have ever read. To be fair, I have many more books on the ETO, but this book stands out as a moving account of the miseries of the common soldier who fought eyeball to eyeball with his Japanese counterparts in the steamy jungles.

Eugene Sledge is an example of American manhood that I fear is lost. A young man from a good family who was anxious to defend his country, he and his fellow Marines willingly suffered for their country in a way I doubt many young people today would. I hope I'm wrong.

I've found the most moving stories of WWII don't come from historians, but from the common fighting man. This is one of the best.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Marines do their DUTY

These marines did what they had to do. I also had no compassion for the Japanese for what they did to our soldiers during WW II. What these Marines did was retribution for the sadistic way the Japanese treated our wounded and prisoners of WAR Way to go MARINE Eugene Sledge

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Random

Perfect for 10+ great book i loved it

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Be prepared for a book that will show you the true horrors of war

Sledgehammer describes the two Sosuth Pacific battles he was part of as a Marine in the First Marine Division during World War II. Since I am a Marine who served in the Vietnam War, I am fully aware of how puny our efforts were when compared to the men who served in the Pacific and those who were at the Cosen Reservoir during the Korean War. I had a first hand experience in combat during my two and one-half years with the Frst Marine Division but after reading this book I am left with the understanding of what a real war is like and of what supremen the Marines of those days were. I am very conservative concerning the use of the descriptive noun "hero" and will not use it here. Certainly there were heroes aplenty in that effort just as there were in Korea and Vietnam. What most of you don't seem to understand is that very few of us who served were not heroes. Most of us did nothing heroic. We just did what at the officers told us to do. That is the way this book unfolds. Sledge and his buddies in third battalion of the Fifth Marine Regiment were just ground pounders doing their duty. The unique perspective Sledge uses in this book will put you in a place you will not likely enjoy occupying. I hope you do not have a weak stomach and you have not eaten recently when he describes
digging in during the assaults around Shuri on Okinawa. I have had people ask me what combat was like in Vietnam. I have never been able to explain it. I don't suppose I ever will. Since I cannot do it, I can point those curious souls to is book. That is more than enough. As a fellow Marine, I am very glad that EB Sledge took and kept all those notes. If you want to understand there are nor has there ever been any John Waynes or Rambos in combat just give this book a read.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

At Last, a book about Island hopping in WWII that puts you there.

"With the Old Breed" is one of the best books that I have read about WWII. Mr. Sledge put you in the foxhole with him. He even takes time to describe the weapons being used. After reading this book, one has to wonder how a human could do what they did. Being a former Marine, I know about the Marine Corps training and I am sure that it had something to do with what happened on those islands.

Semper Fi,
Mr. Sledge, Bravo!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Love Marines!

If you love the USMC, then you'll love this book. It's a gripping and compelling memoir of a Marine and his life on Peleliu and Okinawa. As a fellow Marine, I definitely have a new respect after reading this non fiction for the pacific theater and the Marines that went through the war. Love this book, and highly recommend if you are a WWII buff or a Marine lover.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great read from a man who did not want to live it

With the Old Breed displays the brutality, the boredoom the frustation of the men who fought in those battles. E B Sledge writes with a simplistic beauty to bring home the waste of war. His style makes simple yet elegant with the prose of a man not prone to overstating but truly captures the soul of the marine. Do your job and cover your follow marine.

Not overly analyzing about war E B Sledge takes you to the front battle and lays open the true effects of war.

Please read to know what war is and how romance is not in war its when you come home.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

After watching Ken Burns 'The War' and the accounts attributed to E. B. Sledge, I had to read his book. What an amazing story that everyone should read. Concise, well-written, and heart breaking in the sorrow our troops go through in war. Bless everyone in uniform.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

An excellent memoir

The greatest memoir from a soldier at war that maybe has ever been written. An excellent read, well written, gritty, allows for an understanding of the mental and physical effects of prolonged combat duty can do to an individual. Only wish it had the last installment (Sledge's return home and coping with war) included with it.

I have been looking for this book for a long time. It is a well

I have been looking for this book for a long time. It is a well written diary of a regular guy and his mates during the two battles in the title. Any one who has served in a combat unit will recognize people from their unit, and perhaps even themselves. I highly recommend it.

With The Old Breed

Read this book then see EB Sledge in Spealberg/Hanks production of "Pacific", you will not be disappointed. "I promise you"!

Must read

When you hear of the war crimes in our battles, this book should be required reading for any juror. The shear savagery of this account from both sides woyld require tribunals to infinity. Interesting after all the war stories I have read, how Sledge puts you in his mind effortlessly as you see the insanity of war.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

If you want the photos buy the paperback

Great book! Well written, easy to follow. After I finished reading the book, I flipped through a paperback version in a bookstore. There were lots of photos that were not in the ebook. I contactd BN and the publisher. The publisher doesnt have the electronic rights to the photos, so they are not in the ebook. BN blames the publisher. I blame them both, had I known I would have bought the paperback. There was no warning, however when an ebook is enhanced they are quick to point that out.

AMAZING

Nuff said

Outstanding

They way the book is written gives you a view on the battle and the view point of a marine, who went through hell and back. I would highly tecommend this book to anyone, who enjoys history.

Excelent God bless our military!

My heart is filled with greatitude for the suffering of our soldiers,sailors and marines!

Highly recommended

For those of us who served in the Military, especially U.S. Marines and U.



My recommendation is especially for Marine and Navy personnel who had the privilege of serving in these outfits during their lifetimes and could relate to the hardships of training (Marines), for battle (wartime), and peacetime, to make comparisons of the lives of these past great warriors. Although I served well after WW2, I enjoyed "with the old breed".