Firefighters: Their Lives in Their Own Words [Paperback]

Dennis Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 12, 2002

An unforgettable journey through the daily lives of the brave men and women who have made saving lives their profession.
Dennis Smith, author of Report from Engine Co. 82, traveled across the country talking to dozens of America’s firefighters to put together this powerful collection of their own descriptions of their most dramatic and intense experiences on the job. Their stories, compiled here, are timeless testimonies to the human capacity for heroism and nobility.
Focusing on the most courageous firefighters, from those who have been decorated for heroism to those who have been seriously injured, Firefighters presents the extraordinarily rich and rugged voices of men and women who fight urban building fires, who battle sweeping forest fires, who perform emergency rescues, and who face extreme danger and risk as part of their everyday lives. Sometimes brave, sometimes funny, sometimes bittersweet or filled with anger, these voices combine to make Firefighters both a riveting adventure drama and a moving chronicle of American heroism at its finest.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Smith, author of Report from Engine Co. 82 and editor of Firehouse magazine, has interviewed firefighters around the country, professional and volunteer, male and female, in big cities and in small towns, and here reports their observations about their careers. What shines through most consistently is their altruism: they love their work and not the least of the reasons for that affection is the opportunity they have to save lives, or at least to do good. Another strong element is camaraderie: firefighter after firefighter mentions the sense of family that each feels, a feeling almost as strong as that for the biological family. There are accounts of choosing firefighting as a career, the baptism of fire, firehouse life and, in a really harrowing chapter, details of some of the worst blazes. The book is as moving as it is informative. Photos not seen by PW. $75,000 ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

An unforgettable journey through the daily lives of the brave men and women who have made saving lives their profession.
Dennis Smith, author of Report from Engine Co. 82, traveled across the country talking to dozens of America's firefighters to put together this powerful collection of their own descriptions of their most dramatic and intense experiences on the job. Their stories, compiled here, are timeless testimonies to the human capacity for heroism and nobility.
Focusing on the most courageous firefighters, from those who have been decorated for heroism to those who have been seriously injured, Firefighters presents the extraordinarily rich and rugged voices of men and women who fight urban building fires, who battle sweeping forest fires, who perform emergency rescues, and who face extreme danger and risk as part of their everyday lives. Sometimes brave, sometimes funny, sometimes bittersweet or filled with anger, these voices combine to make Firefighters both a riveting adventure drama and a moving chronicle of American heroism at its finest.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Broadway; 1 edition (March 12, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767913078
• ISBN-13: 978-0767913072
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #284,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars YOU WILL LAUGH YOU WILL CHOKE BACK TEARS, August 29, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Firefighters: Their Lives in Their Own Words (Hardcover)

If your a firefighter you will relate to most of the stories in this book. the author has done an excellent job at putting the word into understandable feelings and did a excellent job in relating to firefighters. If you havnt read this book your missing out on the best one I have read yet.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Classic In That Fine Oral Tradition, April 22, 2002

By 

Sean J. Wilson (Royal Oak, MI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firefighters: Their Lives in Their Own Words (Paperback)

I'm a 27 year-old professional firefighter in a suburb of Detroit. When I was 16 I picked up this book on a whim at the public library and it enveloped me. This book, along with Dennis Smith's classic Report From Engine Co. 82, was the inspiration for me to try to become a fireman. Mr. Smith takes the great anecdotes that every firefighter accumulates and puts them into print just the way they were told, in the fine oral tradition that lives today in every fire hall in the world. Some stories are funny, some sad, some make you wonder why any one anywhere would ever think to take the test.

Whether you're an old brown-shoed leather-lung, or some fresh-faced youngster eyeing this career field for the first time with a furrowed brow, or just someone looking for a book of hair-raising tales from the people who lived it, this book has something in it to give you pause.

Thank you Dennis Smith, from the bottom of my heart. It was you that made all the difference in my life.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book by firefighters for firefighters!, February 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Firefighters: Their Lives in Their Own Words (Hardcover)

I'm suprised this book is now out of print. Having read it almost 10 years ago made me go back to the bookshelf and re-read it. This book is an excellent compilation of firefighters from around the country. The stories the firefighters tell are funny, sad, and overall enjoyable. It is written by firefighters for fighters.