Customer Reviews

A Test of Faith and Courage: Patton's Raiders in WWII

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a member of the 65th Infantry Division of General George Patton's 3rd Army in the World War II European Theater, Oscar B. Ladner earn the Bronze Star and the Combat Infantry Badge for her personal bravery and heroics under fire. It was during his assignment to ride "shotgun"on a Pershing tank that Ladner became one of the soldiers to form the elite fighting force known as "Patton's Raiders". A Test Of Faith And Courage: Patton's Raiders In WWII is Ladner's candid, eye-witness, autobiographical account of battlefield nonstop peril, hunger, mental and physical fatigue combined with outstanding acts of humanity, comradeship, and patriotism. Even after the war was won and over, Ladner had to face the traumatic assignment of clearing out concentration camps and assisting in the evacuation of concentration camp victims, POWs, and displaced persons. A Test Of Faith And Courage provides contemporary readers with a candid, detailed, graphic account of the military hardships, sufferings, and high human cost of saving the world from Nazi tyranny and oppression. A Test Of Faith And Courage is a welcome and informative contribution to the growing library of World War II European Theater military biographies and well serves to refute any attempts at "Revisionist History" seeking to downplay the importance of the war or the atrocities of the Nazi government and supporters.

As a hisory buff, this book has been one of my better purchases this year. It has served as a great inspiration to many of my friends and family, myself included. It is not often that I come across a book that expresses historical significance and includes the "human" element that is missing in so many. This work reflects most of the spirit I see in America today. Praises to the author and his generation of fighters!

I had just recently finished Oscar Ladner's book, and was very upset when I realized I was at the last page. This is a book that you as a reader will not put down. The first night I started the book, I accidentally stayed up until 4:30 in the morning reading it. I come to realize that God had to be "Riding Shotgun" with Oscar, as he was on those Pershings. This book is for anyone and everyone. Any person who reads Oscar Ladner's book will be in church on Sunday and look at the American flag with a little more respect, as well as be prouder of the country we live in today.

I found the book a great read. It kept my interest with raw accounts of a soldier on the frontline

Ladner was an extremely patriotic youth who virtually forced himself into the army in order to fight the enemies of democracy. An attitude like this, expressed so forthrightly is seldom encountered. It is also rare to find a veteran who will write so bluntly about his determination to kill his enemies. His approach is best summarized in his own words. "I prayed to my Almighty God in Heaven and promised Him that if He would keep me safe and sound and return me home all in one piece, that I would continue to fight tyranny and oppression as long as there was breath in my body." The combination of believing he was doing God's work and a youth spent hunting game and growing strong makes him a fearsome soldier.

Ladner's enthusiasm for the cause sees him enlist as soon as he can. He even undergoes surgery to eliminate a medical issue that would normally have excluded him from service. Following training he is assigned to the 65th Infantry Division, which he joins at Saarlautern on the Seigfreid Line in early 1945. He is placed with G Co, 260th Infantry Regt. These events are related briskly and Ladner hits the front on page 19. Following a remarkably inept reception, where amongst other things he is left in the open under artillery fire, he decides to take matters into his own hands, and hunts down and kills the artillery observers concerned! It is astonishing! It sets the tone too. This is very much an account of combat. As Ladner pointedly writes, for the war to end and the enemies of his country to be defeated, he needed to kill as many Germans as he could. His actions are at times quite clinical and it is engrossing to read about his pre-action planning and thoughts.

This is further evidenced in the city cellar fighting, crossing the Saar and myriad other actions. Due to his proficiency as a soldier, Ladner is chosen to be a tank rider on the newly received Pershings. Here he is tasked to provide close protection from panzerfaust troops and to conduct clearances of villages and potential ambush sights. He is particularly proud of this role and writes that they were called `Patton's Raiders'. They did such a good job that apparently even the German's took to calling them `Patton's SS Truppen'. He continues in this role until VE day, after which his unit pulls occupation duty in Austria. Some of the material involving dealing with German POWs is quite interesting indeed. There is though material that shocks. Ladner writes in some detail of the forced repatriation of Easterners back to the Soviets, who massacred them. I have read of this before but the scale of the practice suggested by Ladner here is very disturbing. His subsequent statement that this was kept secret by the American Jewish controlled media was unsettling for a different reason. A few other things he records on this topic slip into the outlandish.

The main drawback though is the excessive repetition of information. It generally takes the form of a piece of explanation, which is then repeated by the first speaker in subsequent dialogue and then said again by the other person in the conversation! Sometimes it happens all over again a few pages later and at its worst it is extremely exasperating. It became so distracting in places I considered awarding only three or even just two stars in response.

On balance though, I have decided that the books strength - an astonishing openness about combat, mostly outweighs the drawbacks. Ladner's bluntness in writing about killing is matched only by Don Burgett and Jim Megellas in my now extensive reading in this genre. Indeed, a couple of passages are so astounding they rocked me back on my seat! It is rare and refreshing to find such an unvarnished account presented in such a strident tone. I do hope though, that future editions are better edited so that the power of Ladner's story can come through in a clearer manner. 4 stars for the combat.

My grandfather loaned me his copy of "A Test of Faith and Courage" in 2002. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I thought the book was very well written and gave a great historical account of day to day life for an infantryman with a unique assignment in WWII. I often recommend it to people.

This charming telling of a Mississippi boy's experiences in WWII made me laugh and cry. The details of his hardships, hunger, cold, fear, frustration, and the faith in God that got him through it all rang true. The most shocking information that I have never heard before -- that the US Govt. allowed train loads of concentration camp survivors to be returned home to countries knowing full well that they were being murdered upon arrival by their own government -- made me sad and angry. I enjoyed reading this unique perspective from a soldier on the front lines whose faith and courage got him home alive.

This was purchased for my father as a gift. He hated it. Here are some of his quotes, "Wasted words. Repetitive and useless. Statements simply don't ring true. Author only interested in praising himself. A complete waste of time."

My dad has probably read hundreds of war stories. He says this one is, by far, the worst. It was very disappointing.