Customer Reviews

Marine at War

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This book is written by a combat Marine, not a post-war historian. The author describes what the war with Japan was really like from a front-line perspective. Once you have read this book, you will only seek first-person accounts, when reading about combat. It is very different from any history book. Read it and see for yourself.

I first read a copy of this book in elementary school and it left enough of an impression that, fifteen years later, I recently tracked down a copy and read it again. It's the recollections of a Marine about his Pacific Campaign experiences some decade and a half after the fact. In part, it is an attempt to answer his sons' questions about war. From the foreward:

"My sons have asked me many questions about war. I have always tried to answer their questions, but sometimes the answers weren't true, and sometimes they weren't complete. It takes time to think out a good and true answer. It is very hard for a father not to make himself seem braver and wiser to his sons than he really was. And war is so many different things all jumbled together. It is hard to sort all these things out and give a sensible answer to one particular question."

Where I think this book succeeds, somewhat uniquely, is in capturing that jumble of things. The relatively short and easy to read account manages to make some profound observations on human responses to war. While the author fought in the Peleliu and Okinawa campagins, the book is not really a chronicle of how the author's experiences fit in to them. Instead, it is an account of how he experienced the war. He goes to some effort to observe the ways various people dealt with the stress and fear of combat and is extremely candid about his own responses to them. It's also notable that about a third of the book deals with the down time between campaigns, revealing different aspects of what a war experience can be.

The author is a good story teller and the book is very engaging. In various anecdotes he manages to capture the jumble of war: the fear and confusion that can lead to a friend being shot in the dark by marines, the way humor helps a naval artillery spotter function amidst a deadly serious battle, the scrounging and dealing that some engage in to get a few comforts, and the realization, while searching enemy corpses, that a faceless and largely unseen enemy is human.

Neither a glorification nor codemnation of war, the book provides some insight into what war is for those fighting it that is often lacking in other histories. I would recommend this memorable account to anyone interested in World War II history but, from my own experience with it, perhaps especially to interested children.

I read this book in the third grade and enjoyed it so much that I remembered it and began to search for it later in life. Excellent entertainment and educational for young and old alike!!

I discovered this book many years ago in an old used book store and enjoyed it thoroughly. I've read it several times since, particularly the chapter on "The Pacific Paradise" which evokes tropical island daydreams and the "Rumor and the Mad Ghoul" chapter which is one of the funniest stories I've ever read.

Davis served with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines on Peleliu and Okinawa. Apparently he was in the same company as Robert Leckie (Helmet for my Pillow) who referred to him as the `Scholar'. As Davis went on to become a university professor, this seems to have been apt. He himself refers to Leckie as `Bob', so there's something of note, though they don't actually do a whole lot together.

Davis' book is fascinating. He is a very articulate man and he really conjures up the chaos that was battle on a Pacific Island. Generally his roles had him keeping communications open so he is not often involved in seeking out the enemy but he is certainly shot at a lot. Some of his material is very vivid, the landing on Peleliu in particular. Another thing that is apparent is the relentless nature of marine tactics. They are just pushed against the enemy until they are burnt to a crisp. It is harrowing stuff. This is very much the case on Okinawa. The number of casualties and the wear on those who continue is incredible. Revealing this so clearly is the strength of Davis' story. He does write a little of firing upon the enemy himself but mostly his story is of being caught in a chaotic slaughterhouse.

It is a shortish book but as Davis opens promptly with landing on Peleliu and finishes quite abruptly with Okinawa, there is still much of interest to read. One fascinating element is his account of the rest period between these battles. It is eye opening to read of the post-battle wind down, the reconciling of losses, the stages of grief, the varied methods of coping, the agonizing swapping of casualty's fates with men from other companies and the many other things that caused distress. It was here in particular that Davis' quality as a writer was evident. There was fortunately some light relief (and he had his and Leckie's books) but also the effect of rumours, including the bizarre story of the `Mad Ghoul' and how it seemingly infected the whole division.

This is a very worthwhile read. Davis writes vividly of what he saw from his foxhole and his frequent forays into the front line. While he writes less of firing his weapon than most others in this theatre, I feel he conveys most powerfully the state of utter confusion and horror of the Pacific battles. My edition is a cheapish looking Bantam, I hope that with the release of `The Pacific' next year, this gets a make-over that showcases it for the serious account of war that it is. Highly Recommended

My first true book about war was "Marine at War" by Davis Russell. It's out of print now, but I've found it through used book sellers. It is the narrative of Mr. Russell's personal experience in war. It starts with the invasion of Peleliu, in the Palau Islands. It's his first combat, and he's in an intelligence team that covers the entire battle zone. Peleliu was hard fought in temperatures over 110 degrees in the shade, but there was no shade because all the vegetation had been blown to bits. Members of his team recall their experience on the "Canal" (Guadalcanal).

We follow Davis to a R and R camp on Pavuvu in the Russell Islands and a short vacation on a deserted island where they were supposed to look for Japanese Submarines, even though the water was to shallow.

But the war continues and they prepare and invade Okinawa. Russell narrates it with compassion, but also the hot reality of combat, and men driven to edge of sanity, and some who step over the edge.

Russell writes with easy to read, and picturesque language that drew me into the history of war when I read it as a teenager.

Highly recommended if you are ready to search for it.

Like another reviewer, I had read this book in grade school and it left such an impression on me, I tracked it down as an adult. Very honest and straightforward account of some of the toughest fighting in the Pacific. This deserves to be compared with other more popular accounts, such as Dr. Eugene Sledge's, "With the Old Breed" and Donald Burgett's accounts of his experiences fighting with the 101st Airborne in Europe. One interesting but little noted aside is that the author apparently served in the same unit as the noted Historian Robert Leckie. I believe Leckie makes reference to the author Russell "Dave" Davis as "the Scholar" in his memoir, "Helment for My Pillow' whereas Leckie is apparently the intelligence scout and former machine gunner "Bob" in "Marine at War." This gives the reader a rare overlapping account of the experiences of one 1st Marine Division unit from the earliest days of the War, to the desperate early fighting of Guadalcanal, through the bitter finish on Owkinawa. It's too bad a smart publisher doesn't add these together as companion works.

I got this book when I joined a book club in third grade. I had not read any real first hand accounts of war at that time or talked to any WWII veterans about the war. It was completely different from any other book I ever read and it felt like a friend was telling you the story sitting around a camp fire.

I still remember the descriptions of battle but even more vivid are the "Ghoul" and the time spent in the rear and on R&R preparing for the next campaign.

When I joined the Marines at 19 years of age in 1972 they told me I scored high enough on the tests to get any occupation I wanted. I remembered the Platoon Order of Battle in the back of the book and the title "Rifleman" always stood out for me. To me if you are going to join the Marines why be anything else. MOS 0311

I Read this book as a young teen and have never forgotton it. Twenty-five years later I am still looking for a copy!

I have read both Helmet for my Pillow by Robert Leckie (The Pacific) and this book. I think Russell Davis does in this book a much better job of conveying what the Marine battles in the Pacific were really like. It starts immediately with the landing on Peliuli diving you right into the midst of a battle. He has a fantastic grasp of attention to detail of the people around him. His observations of how things were and how the men around him behaved is so vivid you feel like you are watching it live. I can not recommend this book enough.