The invincible Germany Army has overrun France and the Low Countries. The battle for Great Britain begun. However, Europe is of no concern to the Class of ‘44—America is not yet at war. For the in coming class, 1940 is a time of innocence and happiness.
Brett Ashley and Cal Sinclair are roommates at the highly respected Military College. Despite their very different personalities, they were a perfect combination. It seemed all would go well for Ashley and Sinclair. Ashley thrived in the military environment. Sinclair became an honor student. Ashley met Kit Montague, the registrar’s daughter, the first day he arrived. She pursued and he happily offered little resistance. Kit introduced Cal to Liz Rutledge, a beautiful young debutante from a prominent Charleston family. They became an inseparable foursome.
But then came the war. In 1943, their class is called to active duty, a year short of graduation. Friends and brothers of the classes of 1942 and 1943 drove the enemy from the beaches of Normandy back to his borders. Now the time has come for the Class of‘44—"The Class That Never Was"—to carry the battle to the heart of Northwestern Europe.
An alumnus of one Carolina university said of the time—"We were just boys, pure boys, and then there was the war and half of us were dead or wounded."
Jack Cobb details a passionate new perspective of what the fighting was like at the front, and a fascinating picture of life in the aftermath of war. His Brett Ashley, the rifle platoon leader, and Cal Sinclair, the fighter pilot, capture the heart and imagination as he details how they became skilled warriors who did all that was asked of them. And in the end retained their civility—respect, not hate, for the enemy.
