The Generals

Patton, MacArthur, Marshall, and the Winning of World War II

By: Winston Groom

Narrated by: Robertson Dean

Length: 16 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Celebrated historian Winston Groom tells the intertwined and uniquely American tales of George Patton, Douglas MacArthur, and George Marshall - from the World War I battle that shaped them to their greatest achievement: leading the allies to victory in World War II.

These three remarkable men-of-arms, who rose from the gruesome hell of the First World War to become the finest generals of their generation during World War II, redefined America's ideas of military leadership and brought forth a new generation of American soldier. Their efforts revealed to the world the grit and determination that would become synonymous with America in the postwar years.

Virginian George Marshall led his class at the Virginia Military Institute to become the principal planner of the Battle of the Meuse-Argonne, the greatest American operation, which ended the conflict. Afterward, he rose to become the army's chief of staff, where he balanced the volatility of generals such as Patton and MacArthur for the good of the country.

Like Marshall, George Patton, who is remembered as one of the most heroic and controversial generals in American history, overcame early academic difficulties to graduate at the top of his class at West Point. He would build and command the army's burgeoning tank division, lead the successful invasion of North Africa during World War II, and die under mysterious circumstances in 1945.

Douglas MacArthur also graduated at the top of his West Point class and became known as the "bravest man in the US Army" during the First World War, where he was commissioned as the youngest general in the armed forces. He commanded in the Pacific in World War II, where his strategy famously defeated the Empire of Japan.

©2015 Winston Groom (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Three of America’s Finest Generals splendidly written about

This was such an amazing book to listen to; it did so much in one book to catch me up on three of America’s finest generals, not just on WW2 but also WW1 and American history apart from these awful wars. My affinity was towards general Patton, but I learned so much about all three and left with a deep respect for all of them and a thirst to learn more about men similar to them. I didn’t like that general Eisenhower was excluded- but he is worthy of his own chronicle. Splendidly written and read!

Well Worth the Resd

the book seem very well-researched and stayed away from sensationalism in my opinion. It covered each of the men objectively and evenly. The manner in which it jumped from various theaters in various efforts by each of the men worked very well with most chapters being dedicated to a single person. Lots of History to learn, including the fact that Patton was an extraordinary General and that MacArthur may have been this country's greatest General. George Marshall, on the other hand, was a master of understanding people, understanding skills, and understanding Logistics. Our country is very fortunate to have had each of these men serve at the time they did.

A truly excellent book.

I highly recommend this book. So much information about these three great men. It is interesting and never lags. The narration is also
Excellent quality. So glad I purchased it!

Great historic tale!

I really enjoyed this in-depth analysis of three very important generals, who’s skills influenced the course of the world wars and set the stage for the world today.

Very nice resume

A very accurate resume of 3 extraordinary life of the generals that made possible the victory for US on WW2

Great biographical information

Great biographical sketches of 3 of the most important American General officers of the 20th Century. Lots of vignettes and anecdotal stories that helped me to understand them better.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding our military leaders.

Great Historical Account of Three Heroic Generals

Wonderful detailed account of three incredible people who shaped our country during difficult times. The sacrifice and dedication of these men is truly amazing. I wish we had them now..

3 great Generals

Outstanding story and performance. Although it took me some time to complete it. It is well worth the time.

Amazing

Great book and super cool perspective of the wars from all three generals. I really liked how they timelines were parallel and a super cool concept for a book. I look forward to diving more into the generals individually.

Highly recommended!

Interesting and a great narrative

Winston Groom has written interwoven biographies of three great American Military leaders of the 20th Century. I have read a number of Groom’s books in the past; one of his books was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Many of his books were about leaders in the aviation field.

I have read extensively about all three of these famous generals, Patton and Marshall were two of my favorite generals. Surprisingly I found new information about all three generals, which alone make the book worth reading. The biographies of each general all touch the main highlights of each man’s career.

The three generals are all extremely interesting and have contrasting personalities so they are easy to follow. Patton the most flamboyant of the three developed the essentials of tank warfare in World War One then applied the knowledge with expertise in World War Two. Marshall is the only team player of the three men, he became type cast in World War One as a staff officer, and he was a brilliant strategic planner and also a genius at organizing logistics, personnel and supply. He was Chief of Staff in WWII and devised the Marshall Plan as Secretary of State and also served as Secretary of Defense. MacArthur was consider to be the greatest of our field generals but like Marshall his greatest achievements came after the War, in creating the groundwork for modern Japan. Groom follows each man from youth to end of career. Groom points out that each man was extremely knowledgeable in history, all were prolific readers and all wrote poetry with Patton being the most prolific poet. They grew up at a time when poetry was very popular and everyone wrote poetry.

The book is well written and meticulously researched. The author has the skills of a novelist in sense of timing and scene building. If you enjoy history this book is for you. Robertson Dean did an excellent job narrating the book. The book is fairly long at about 16 hours.