An initial review from an “old” US Army Infantry colonel after reading Dying Hard:
I just finished Dying Hard. Wow! What a great read. You have captured the visceral feel of what the charter members of the Greatest Generation were so silent about. You research is evident on every page and it makes the reading interesting, informative, and enjoyable. I do my reading in the last hour and a half every night. I found myself looking forward to that time during the day and in a few cases, like today, I cheated and read during the day.
I hope somehow that the children and descendants of the solders you write about know about the book. What joy and pride it would / will bring to them when they read it. I know the effort it must have taken to get the firsthand accounts and the diligence it took in your research to mine such great information and personal detail.
Your history of the company during the Battle of the Bulge gave the reader a great feel for the frustration and challenges leaders at the squad, platoon, and company level had to endure. The constant rotation of soldiers in and out of the company must have been frustrating and disheartening to leaders at every level. Reading Jack Dunlap’s detailed daily reports lays out exactly what junior leaders had to overcome to get the even simplest things done.
Dying Hard gives a much better view of what that battle was like for the common soldier, not just the fighting but the challenges of everyday life as a grunt. Dying Hard [also] introduced me to Paddy Flint. What a hero and great leader who understood how to inspire his entire unit with his lead from the front and deeds not words leadership. I want to learn more about him. His letter to Gen. Bradley was prophetic.
I very much enjoyed the School of the Soldier. It brought back many memories. This 30 veteran learned some things I did not know about the gear that I carried for three decades. It’s funny, my Dad gave the same advice about not playing cards with Sergeants. I caught myself several times wiping a tear from my eye as I read about the great soldiers lives during and after the war. They truly were the Greatest Generation and the Silent Generation.
One of the big surprises to me was the number of times solders were wounded, many 2-3 times. Some used the wound to get out of the war, but the number who just wanted to get back to B company is a testament to the kind of men we bred back then.
I am glad that you have written a book about one of the many units that were not elite or famous. These were the yeoman units that really won the war but unfortunately got very little press, praise, or recognition. I particularly enjoyed following your father’s story line in the book. His story is fascinating. To survive the combat and then the Stalag was quite an accomplishment.
I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed Dying Hard. You have helped me decide on what to buy my son for Christmas. I have and will recommend it to all my friends as a must read.
Dying Hard stands among the very best WWII reads I have had. The research is exceptional, and the writing is wonderful.