Marine! The Life of Chesty Puller [Mass Market Paperback]

Burke Davis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1991

From commanding the Horse Marines in Peking to leading the Inchon landing, Puller became a legend in his own time. Now, Davis offers a no-holds-barred biography of this courageous hero--the only marine in history ever to win five Navy Crosses. **MASS MARKET PAPER**

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (April 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553271822
• ISBN-13: 978-0553271829
• Product Dimensions: 4.3 x 1.1 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #114,445 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for anyone contemplating the Corps as a Career., January 2, 2000

By 

William P. Urban (Presque Isle, Maine) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marine! The Life of Chesty Puller (Mass Market Paperback)

I am a Vietnam Vet and was in the same Province as Chesty's son Lewis Puller Jr. (Quang Nam Province, 1970) One of the reasons I read the bio about his father as well as the son's own auto-bio. War is no joking matter and no game as Lewis Jr. found out. You also can't fight a war all by yourself which is sometimes the impression gained from Burke's book. The striking point to me about Chesty Puller however, more than his heroism under heavy enemy fire, is that Chesty, advancing from Private to Lieutenant General, throughout his long career never forgot where he came from. Time after time in incidents vividly described in Burke's book, Burke clearly shows that Chesty never got carried away with his own legend and always maintained a genuine and real concern for the enlisted men who did the fighting and the dying. And who, when he saw Officer abuse of enlisted men, as opposed to ordinary disipline nipped it in the bud. This book clearly shows that the enlisted men were very close to Chesty's heart and that Chesty never asked anyone, enlisted or NCO or Officer to do anything that he had not or would not do himself. Very excellent book. Was not able to stop reading once I began it.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Semper Fidelis, August 31, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Marine! The Life of Chesty Puller (Mass Market Paperback)

Burke Davis wrote a definitive account of the legendary 'Chesty' Puller. It's as much a biography of Puller as it is a history of the Corps, for the two were intertwined for the better part of forty years. Very easy read, always entertaining, never a dull page. Should be required reading for all military professionals, especially Marines. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars They don't make em like this anymore, November 17, 2000

By 

Chris Gregor (Great Barrington, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Marine! The Life of Chesty Puller (Mass Market Paperback)

Burke Davis did a spectacular job with this book and I highly recommend it. Not having served in the Marine Corps, this book gave me a pungent taste and deep admiration for this elite fighting brotherhood of which Puller is a legend. What came through to me most about Puller was his incredible humanity and compassion for his men. Puller would never eat until his men ate first, and in the midst of the frostbitten epic Marine engagement at the Chosin Resevoir in the Korean War, Davis writes that Puller took his own jacket off to give to a grunt who didn't have one. This to me is what made Puller special and puts a gold plate on the heroic bust that Davis has crafted - fearsome pugnacity, steely toughness, and unparalleled leadership were qualities he possessed in uncommon quantities, but his heart of gold was what makes him and this book stand out. It's a sad commentary on modern day America that a man like Chesty Puller would probably be mocked, scorned and marginalized. A good read.