The Greatest War: American's in Combat: 1941-1945 [Hardcover]

Gerald Astor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1990

The Greatest War is an American-combat history of what Studs Turkel dubbed the good war, World War II, told largely in the words of the American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines who were there.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

After years of lying in wait, the WWII story sprang back into action last year, with movies like Saving Private Ryan and books like Tom Brokaw's The Greatest Generation. But as many stories as have been told so far, there are an almost infinite number more to tell, which Astor's book seeks to do. Astor, author of The Right to Fight and numerous other works of military and social history, has patched together countless firsthand accounts of many of the battles in which Americans fought during WWII. Thus, one is introduced to Pearl Harbor through the account of one soldier whose first thought was that the Japanese planes were actually American and that the pilots were going to get into a lot of trouble for bombing a hangar; another account quite convincingly conveys another man's experience surviving the downing of his plane and interrogation in a German prison camp. But at a broader level, the book suffers from a fundamental lack of focus. On battles that remain less in the public eye, Astor's results are fascinating--his account of the attack on Salerno, in particular--but the reports are too brief to do anything but tantalize. And as interesting as the first-person accounts are, their broad outlines are likely to be familiar to WWII buffs. Astor's deep knowledge and the amazing experiences of his subjects come through clearly, however, as he drives home that this was a time when particularly remarkable people had particularly remarkable experiences. Photos not seen by PW. (Dec.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In his introduction, Astor (The Mighty Eight, Right To Fight) states: "I hope to present a sense of what the American fighting man experienced in terms of what he thought, felt, saw, heard and tried to do." He succeeds admirably, creating the finest one-volume oral history available of the American soldier in World War II. Beginning with Pearl Harbor and proceeding chronologically to the dropping of the atomic bomb, this book describes army, navy, and marine corps actions through the eyes of the participants. The entries are well chosen, and Astor has arranged them in a fast-paced, smoothly flowing narrative. In his conclusion, he considers the war philosophically. Especially interesting is his tweaking of Tom Brokaw's The Greatest Generation; comparing generations and their wars, he says, is not valid. Ambrose remains the master oral historian of the European Theater, but Astor has written the first oral history to include all of the services and theaters of the war. Highly recommended.
-Richard S. Nowicki, Emerson Vocational H.S., Buffalo, NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1088 pages
• Publisher: Presidio Press; 1St Edition edition (June 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891416951
• ISBN-13: 978-0891416951
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 2.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,158,599 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Infantry Man's View, October 23, 2000

By 

Robert Ornellas (Washington State) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Greatest War: American's in Combat: 1941-1945 (Hardcover)

As an Infantry man in WW II,( 25th Divison, 35 Inf. Regt)I have been there done that, seen that. This book tells the reader what it was like, How it stunk, The hurt, frustration, and most of all the "ugly" side of all wars.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT OVERVIEW, January 29, 2006

By 

RBI "HIGHLANDER" (UTAH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Greatest War: American's in Combat: 1941-1945 (Hardcover)

OUTSIDE OF THE VERY NEGATIVE REVIEWS, AND THEY HAVE A RIGHT TO THEIR OPINION, I FOUND THIS BOOK AN EXCELLENT OVERVIEW OF COMBAT IN WW II, ESPECIALLY SMALL UNITS. LOOK, NOBODY GETS EVERYTHING RIGHT IN A BOOK THAT TRIES TO COVER SO MUCH, BUT THE AUTHOR BY AND LARGE DID AN EXCELLENT JOB. I AM 61 YEARS OLD, A LIFETIME SCHOLAR OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR, AND WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS TO SOMEONE STARTING OUT, OR SOMEONE THAT WANTS A GOOD IDEA OF WHAT IT WAS LIKE FROM SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE THERE. SEMPER FI

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling reading, Excellent historical detail., August 5, 2009

By 

GTO-OLDS Car Guy "history teacher" (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Greatest War: American's in Combat: 1941-1945 (Hardcover)

I teach high school USA History and have been a life long "student" of World War II. Both of my grandfathers fought in the war. Additionally, I read conflict non-fiction as a hobby. In the past 10 years, I estimate that I have read 200-300 conflict books. The Greatest War by Astor is my second favorite conflict book. The book begins each chapter by providing background information about the goals and strategy of a given campaign. Then the book provides first hand accounts of what happened in the battles. My 12-year-old son loves the book as well. I have bought three copies of the Greatest War this year. I have given two as gifts. P.S. My favorite conflict book is "Blood on the Risers" by John Leppleman. I have read that Vietnam conflict book 7 times.