Customer Reviews

Strong Men Armed: The United States Marines Against Japan

5 star:		(41)
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3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(2)

 

 

Three veterans of the First Marine Division have written accounts of WWII. E.B. Sledge in "With the Old Breed," William Manchester in "Goodbye Darkness," and Robert Leckie in "Strong Men Armed."

"With the Old Breed" and "Goodbye Darkness" are personal reminiscences, but "Strong Men Armed" is a scholarly study. It doesn't dwell on personal experiences, but gives the vast panorama of the Navy/Marine Corps island hopping campaign, and helps to put Sledge's and Manchester's personal memoirs into the context of the whole war in the Pacific. Leckie does give his chronicle a personal touch by occasionally stopping to pay tribute to some of the matchless individual deeds heroism and sacrifice. One arresting theme is his account of each and every Medal of Honor awarded to Marines who threw themselves onto live hand grenades to save their comrades. ("Greater love hath no man than this: that he lay down his life for his friends.")

Sledge's book ("With the Old Breed") is a plain spoken account of one man's view of the horrors of the war in the Pacific. Manchester's book ("Goodbye Darkness") reads something like the out-loud ruminations of a mental patient working through unresolved issues on the psychiatrist's couch. Leckie's book is an epic account of a titanic struggle.

For the Big Picture of the war in the Pacific, "Strong Men Armed" can't be beaten. For a more personal look at the war, read "With the Old Breed."

To my knowledge, no other comprehensive presentation of the Pacific theater brings home the chilling reality of the US Marine Corps island campaign as Strong Men Armed by Robert Leckie. It's all here: the frenzied horror of amphibious assault under massed fire, the slogging through sodden, malarial jungles, the hand-to-hand slugfest required to rid each island of an entrenched and implacable foe, and the truly uncommon selflessness that led to a multitude of Medal of Honor recipients.

Gaudalcanal, Bougainville, New Britain, Tarawa, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and other Pacific assaults are presented in detail from the perspective of enlisted and commissioned marines. Both infantry and air wing receive their due as Leckie is equally skilled at describing the Marine Corps aerial domination of the Japanese fighter and bomber.

I've read my fair share of WWII history and it is in awe and suspense that I ripped through this gritty, sometimes ghastly, yet ultimately inspirational book. Leckie's Strong Men Armed is a military masterpiece. I cannot offer a stronger recommendation. 5+ stars.

Robert Leckie's vivid account of WWll Marine Corps history is a must read for any military enthusiast. Reading this gripping tale of Leathernecks fighting their way through the steamy jungles of the far east isles with such distant names as; Guadacanal, Saipan, and Iwo Jima, will leave you with an unequvical respect for the valient men who sacrificed their lives for our country. As a former Marine I have a greater appreciation for the price that was paid in the Pacific Theater. This book will never let me forget the cost in blood and lives my beloved countrymen paid, so that we may have our freedom. Leckie's book memorializes our fighting Marines: Men like, Manila John Bastilone, Chesty Puller, Red Mike Edson, and countless others who,"went above and beyond the call of duty", for the love of our country, God, and Corps. STRONG MEN ARMED, should be read by every boot, NCO, and Commissioned Officer of the United States Marine Corps as a reminder of the heroic and gallant sacrifice our Marines paid for our way of life. May the Marine Corps live forever!

Semper Fidelis, Roger Lemus (Cpl.USMC)

Those of you who are unfamiliar with Mr Leckie have been missing out. He is one of the premier military historians, not only because of his excellent writing style, but because he is a combat veteran and can therefore associate with his subject. He has written wonderful general histories of all of America's wars, including the best WWII summary, Delivered from Evil.

But this book stands tall among all of his other writings because this one was personal. Leckie is a veteran of many bloody battles with the first Marine division in WWII and therefore knows quite well what he is talking about. Here he takes you on a sweeping journey, as the marines battle the japs across the Pacific. His writing is awesome! He always keeps you on the hook, and as you speed through his very short chapters, you find it hard to find a place to stop. This is a very easy read, including well drawn maps, that will give you a good overall history of the Pacific campaign and still show you the war from the individuals perspective on every page.

One of the classics of Pacific WWII literature!!!

Although twenty four years of age I have a deep respect and admiration for soldiers of the second world war, but my respect for the US Marine is unsurpassed. In Leckie's book you will read easily the most enjoyable and heartbreaking overview of the titanic struggle between the United States and the Japanese Empire. Enjoyable because it is well written, flows beautifully, and honestly reads like an action thriller. (Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Peleliu and Iwo Jima were the best accounts in this book)But also heartbreaking because one has to realize that WWII was a war against good versus evil, nothing more. Liberals may hate me for that but the truth hurts sometimes. And the godawfull truth of WWII is that a lot of brave men had to die agonizing deaths or receive crippling injuries to insure that the evil in the world was vanquished. The Marines were the best of the best, then as well as now. Through superior technology, tactics, and an indomitable spirit the US Marine defeated the once feared Japanese Samurai. Let us be thankfull that Japan is an ally of the US now, and that (God willing) we will never have to fight each other again. I did not find this book to be overly critical of the Japanese, and although some will balk at the use of the slur "Japs" lets remember that Leckie was a Marine in the big one, he fought for his country and was injured on the line. Meaning he probably saw some of his best friends blown to bits by Japanese artillery or cut down by machine gun and rifle fire. Old hatreds die hard, and in "Strong men armed" you'll never read a more moving tribute to the greatest of the greatest generation.

Robert Leckie is one of the best writers of history and this maybe his best work. This is a clear, concise, comprehensive account of the Island War in the Pacific. Clearly written, Leckie puts his reader into the picture while teaching, producing a potent combination of entertainment and learning. You can get hooked on history reading Leckie; I did as a teenager.

Robert Leckie lived many of these actions and his personal experiences makes the narration more real as the reader senses his feelings and experiences. However, this is a history not a personal account and we never get lead down the path of experience. This is the best account of the Island War ever written by a top-flight author.

As a former marine my experiences during my 16 years of service pale in comparison to the experiences of these men who carried the war to the Japanese. Written by a infantryman, Mr. Leckie know's better then anyone what those experiences are like. This book brings the reader right to the beaches and jungles where Marines wrote a new page in their history. With the passing of time fewer and fewer of these men are alive. This book should be required reading of every high school and college student. We must never forget what these men gave to every American and every person in the world. We must never forget the sacrifices they made, and they made these sacrifices without question. Mr. Leckie should be commended.

This is the best, most comprehensive book about not only the Marine Corps but a well-written book about many of the battles and sacrifices in all of the South Pacific during WWII. It gives a raw realistic look at what really happened and should be read by anyone who wants to know what it was really like and how brutal combat with the Japs was. Take it from an old U.S. Navy veteran, its well worth the money.

If you are going to read about the war in the Pacific (re World War II) this is the first book you should read. It is very comprehensive and provides you an excellent understanding of how the Pacific War graduated, island-by-island, from Guadalcanal to Okinawa. It keeps everything in perspective. The author writes in a very reader-friendly manner; maps are good; and the Marine story is dealt with in a straightforward manner with appropriate references to what other units (such as the Army and the Navy) were doing while Marine action was occuring. The only problem I had was "what happened to Pappy Boyington?" The author intersperses major events with little interesting "side stories," such as Boyington shooting down Japanese planes, and later he being captured, and later Boyington on Truk cussing and with the Japanese pilots threatening to kill him. So what happened to Boyington? Otherwise an excellent and comprehensive account, very readable and, like another reviewer states, very re-readable.

Robert Leckie is the best author I have ever seen detailing the wars in U.S. History. This book is another great story detailing the Marines struggle against the Empire of Japan. Because Mr. Leckie was a participant, this offering provides greater detail of the battles than most of his books. He really gives good descriptions of the people and places where the battles were fought and the courage of the Marines and Japanese as they were locked in a life or death struggle. This is an excellent book on the ground war in the Pacific.