Customer Reviews

Grace Under Fire: Letters of Faith in Times of War

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
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I just finished reading this book today, and I was simply amazed at the accounts written by various soldiers from America's wars. I would love to use an excerpt or two for my reading classes in China, but alas, I borrowed a library book...! I would definitely recommend this book to any who want to know more about the sacrifices American soldiers have made to help preserve the liberties that they and their fellow countrymen enjoy, and for those who wish to know how war has affected the faith of those who have witnessed its desolation.

I thoroughly have enjoyed this book and have read it several times. I have used it several times as guided discussions in a classroom setting. I felt it an important part of our front line stories that I got copies for the chaplains on base. I have actually gone back and gotten some of Andrews earlier books and have come to realize that warfare itself has changed, the verbage we use has changed but the feelings and emotions are still the same.

Grace Under Fire is BRILLIANT...simply BRILLIANT!

It is overwhelmingly touching, powerful and inspiring and any one of these letters will pierce your heart. I was profoundly moved by the e-mail written by the late David Bloom.

Through these letters of faith in GRACE UNDER FIRE, Andrew Carroll gives us a glimpse of our service men and women and their families; we read about what they had...what they never lost...and what it means to "have faith", feel its power, how it has changed them or how they have reconnected with their faith.

GRACE UNDER FIRE is no ordinary book--this is another literary treasure from Andrew Carroll; this is the book you hand deliver and say "You must read this."

The threads of faith are smoothly woven by soldiers from the Revolutionary war through our current conflicts. Their personal letters written to loved ones are sensitive and plain spoken in the face of the terror of their war. Bravo to Andy Carroll for sharing these personal reflections. I found this book very inspiring!

In these emotionally moving letters and anecdotes, the author reveals that paradox of faith in the most intense suffering. This is a work that will be enjoyed by the faithful and by historians alike. I have many friends who have experienced the worst horrors of war and can attest these same kinds of stories. There is nothing compared to hearing those stories from a friend but this work is as close to that personal connection many might make and well worth reading. The old adage that there are no atheists in foxholes does, indeed, hold a great deal of truth.

Every once in a while you pick up a book that transforms your attitude and perspective on a subject. Grace Under Fire: Letters of Faith in Times of War did that for me. I've never considered myself to be overly patriotic. Now that does not mean that I do not love my country and am ungrateful for those who have fought to give me the freedoms I enjoy every day. On the contrary, I do...I just don't get too emotional about it nor do I traditionally make a big deal out of holidays like Memorial Day or Veterans' Day.

That is going to change and largely due to this book that I stumbled upon while visiting the library with my daughter. Grace Under Fire is a unique collection of letters written during the major wars in US history. There are letters representing the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I and II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Gulf War and the first few years after September, 11th of the War On Terrorism.

What is unique about these letters is that in them the writers all addressed the different thoughts and feelings one gets when they are faced with extreme situations and death on a daily basis. This gives us not only a glimpse into the world of hardships each generation of soldier faced but we also get to see how the war affected their family at home.

Many of the letters express regret or apprehension toward taking the life of another man even if they are the enemy. Others are wonderfully written expressions of love and strengthened devotion in the face of extreme temptation to stray from a spouse. To me, the most touching were letters from Chaplains or nurses who wrote to family back home on behalf of a dead soldier they had come into contact. They contained words of comfort and assurance that their son died courageously and that his life was not lost in vain.

As is often the case in times of war, many questioned the existence of God due to the atrocities they witnessed. I loved the conclusion they came to:

"I don't know whether God goes forth with armies but I do know that His is in lots of our men or they would not do what they do."
"He is in the Operating Room guiding the hands of the surgeons. He is in the will of the sergeants helping organize a blood drive as only they can. He is in the hearts of the soldiers who immediately rolled up their sleeves to give what they had to save a dying brother whom they don't even know."

They chose to look at the goodness of God when it would have been so easy to just blame all the bad things on Him as so many do today. We could learn a lot from these men and woman.

This book has drastically changed my passion for and interest in the lives of our service men and women that defend us each and every day. They live unique and thankless lives that few of us will ever understand. I found myself getting very emotional as I learned about the fears they faced and the friends they lost. I think everyone who has even the slightest interest in biographies or history needs to pick-up this book.

If you have war letters that you think others could benefit from or you are not sure what to do with them, please contact The Legacy Project. It is an organization that collects these letters to keep this amazing part of our history from being lost. Grace Under Fire is just one of the books that has been made from this compilation of letters.

"And so I bid you adieu. Christians never say goodbye. Sooner or later we all meet again." - Corporal William Kiessel November 13, 1943 written while waiting for a pending invasion.

This is an outstanding book that I've read many times and shared with numerous friends of faith. The book, the works behind it, and the multiple intents for it are worthy of as much praise as can be heaped upon it. It's written for everyone: the common person who's never been to war, those have been or are in the thick of things overseas and especially the families of those who serve. It's a way to understand others thoughts and feelings as well as your own if you're in those circumstances.

Andrew Carroll has faith and a heart that is bigger than Texas in his desire to help others in their times of need to understand things bigger than themselves. This is one of his works in that human endeavor to make life better for others. A humanitarian award should be given to him for his desire to make life a little easier or better for others and to help others share their feelings over such harsh and emotional issues in life.

This is a must read for anyone concerned about war and the feelings that it invokes in service members, their families and even their friends. Read it for yourself and then share with others whom you know.

I loved this book. We have been sending copies to our Troops as a community project in care packages and their feedback is terrific, they love it! As w/all of Mr. Carroll's work it brings the true and authentic stories home with what our men, women, and families experience while at war. One of the nicest things about this book is the elegance and quality, it simply feels good in your hands. I have given this book out already to civilians numerous times as gifts. I appreciated reading about the spiritual aspect and how faith does bring hope and encouragement during times of struggle, loneliness, and pain.

I have read many war diaries and letters and didn't find much different from what I've seen before in this collection of heart warming epistles from the front. As a Christian I appreciated the comments about how the faith of the writers' and their loved ones at home served them so well as they faced death.