Reluctant Warriors
This title appealed to me because my grandfather served in the Pacific in WWII. I found these stories to be very engaging as they covered each miliutary man's early years, their war years and how the war affected their lives and the lives of their families after the conflict was over. One feels like they are in the midst of the war action and looking over the person's shoulders when they watching the families live their lives and reminiscence. Just a wonderful oral history style read. --Lesley Bodemann , NetGallery
Its a story of the World War II soldiers , ordinary men in extraordinary situations and circumstances who took no pleasure in killing. Stories of the men and women and families who became victims of the Great Depression, how their lives changed and how their incredible journey changed them forever. This book honours each and every man who had psychological problems when they came back which took years to overcome and years out of their lives to serve their country. its about the families who had to endure hardships , defeat, loss and how they all rose to the challenge of wars fought on all fronts., --Pam Thomas, NetGallery
Although not dwelling upon the horror, the raw truth about deaths caused in wartime is shown by all of them, as is the unconscionable and unthinkable callousness the Japanese showed toward their own people, let alone their captured enemy. There's the growing realization of war, and the burden on the heart and soul for killing innocents and increased by seeing their faces. War is not glorious, and these were reluctant warriors. Their trials should be remembered, --Hilary Carter, GoodReads.com
Its a story of the World War II soldiers , ordinary men in extraordinary situations and circumstances who took no pleasure in killing. Stories of the men and women and families who became victims of the Great Depression, how their lives changed and how their incredible journey changed them forever. This book honours each and every man who had psychological problems when they came back which took years to overcome and years out of their lives to serve their country. its about the families who had to endure hardships , defeat, loss and how they all rose to the challenge of wars fought on all fronts., --Pam Thomas, NetGallery
Although not dwelling upon the horror, the raw truth about deaths caused in wartime is shown by all of them, as is the unconscionable and unthinkable callousness the Japanese showed toward their own people, let alone their captured enemy. There's the growing realization of war, and the burden on the heart and soul for killing innocents and increased by seeing their faces. War is not glorious, and these were reluctant warriors. Their trials should be remembered, --Hilary Carter, GoodReads.com
Redemption
Author Jon Stafford has had a lot of preparation for writing the Reluctant Warrior series about the experiences of individual U.S. soldiers in World War II. He was born in 1948, shortly after the war and had five uncles and too many family friends to mention who were in it. What he learned from the people he knew and from reading about the war for fifty some odd years is the similarity between persons then and now, whether men or women, young or old.
According to Stafford, Americans across the decades have similar responses to war. He writes of how men in 1942 looked forward with some zeal to going into combat, but soon that was replaced with the hopes and prayers that it would end soon. The zeal was replaced by a tremendous fear as to what would happen to them, to their fellow soldiers, and to their families.
Stafford believes that patriotism back then was rather the same as we have today. They had love of country and devotion to what we hold dear and the idea that what we have is worth fighting for has not changed.
Lastly, Stafford contends that people 70 years ago had very similar transitions to go through to step into combat as they do today. Back then, young soldiers went from bicycles to machine guns in a few short years; from BB guns to very complicated weaponry capable of tremendous death. Today they step from animated video games of war that entertain into real life and death circumstances.
According to Stafford, Americans across the decades have similar responses to war. He writes of how men in 1942 looked forward with some zeal to going into combat, but soon that was replaced with the hopes and prayers that it would end soon. The zeal was replaced by a tremendous fear as to what would happen to them, to their fellow soldiers, and to their families.
Stafford believes that patriotism back then was rather the same as we have today. They had love of country and devotion to what we hold dear and the idea that what we have is worth fighting for has not changed.
Lastly, Stafford contends that people 70 years ago had very similar transitions to go through to step into combat as they do today. Back then, young soldiers went from bicycles to machine guns in a few short years; from BB guns to very complicated weaponry capable of tremendous death. Today they step from animated video games of war that entertain into real life and death circumstances.