War in the South Pacific

Out in the Boondocks, U.S. Marines Tell Their Stories

By: James D. Horan, Gerold Frank

Narrated by: Tom Perkins

Length: 7 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

"I was in one of the last landing barges to hit the beach of Gavutu Island. We were halfway in when the Japanese machine guns got their range. Bullets slapped the water and whined as they ricocheted off the barge. Some of us ducked; some of us fell to the floor; and all of us prayed."

Here, in heart-stopping human detail, are 21 personal accounts told by the men themselves. They are the stories of men who lived in hell and lived to tell of it.

There is the story of Sgt. Albert Schmid, who was awarded the Navy Cross for his single-handed destruction of a flanking attack while on Guadalcanal. The account of Private Nicolli who was literally blown into the air like a matchstick and then, with a piece of shrapnel in his chest, managed to help a wounded comrade to the rear. "The luckiest man in the Solomons", Sgt. Koziar, tells of how he had his tonsils removed with the assistance of a Japanese sniper's bullet.

These are just three of the 21 fascinating stories that were told to Gerold Frank and James Horan just months after these Marines had returned from active duty to recover from the conflict in the Pacific.

The valor of these Marines is astounding, as 21-year-old Corporal Conroy states in the audiobook, "I don't suppose I shall ever be able to sum up all the bravery, the guts, the genuine, honest courage displayed by the boys out in Guadalcanal. They were afraid, and yet they took it. They had what it takes...."

The battles of Gavutu-Tanambogo, Tulagi, Tenaru, Matanikau, and Guadalcanal are all covered through these accounts, which take the listener right to the epicenter of the Pacific conflict.

Public Domain (P)2018 Tantor

Good stories, would have preferred a better reader

Good stories but the earlier reviews are soot on;
A better, more serious sounding narrator would have done the stories justice.

And, an epilogue is so badly needed!! What happened to these people.. ?
All the stories are circa 1942-1943... did they go back into action? Survive the war? Future issues crop up?

An epilogue would have been much more satisfying to end the book.

T.

in The Heroes own words

all first hand accounts of combat on
Guadalcanal. The finest generation of Americans that ever lived recording there experiences for posterity. ashamed to say that never again all this country ever breed such heroes as the ones featured in this book.

great compendiums of ww2 battles.

fast paced stories from humor to heartbreak .

I didn't care for this narrator, sounded too jovial like he was reading a kids book. I had to speed up the sound.

Could’ve used an epilogue.

The stories were great but they end suddenly after the battle. I made an investment in these guys’ stories and I would like to know what happened with their lives afterward. Still a very good book.

Amazing stories from Pacific War

If only men were required to fight the wars they cause and declare themselves instead of sending little boys off to die it’s disgraceful

Goog

Great book but I wish it was one narrative
Mfw 15 word minimum (it’s not a very happy face)