I read DOING BATTLE over a year ago while doing research for a WWII era biography I was writing. I was looking for memoirs of wartime that would reflect the times. Fussell's book did that and more. He wrote of his early life in California and college in Pomona, then of his military experience, including the serious wounds he received as a twenty year-old infantry lieutenant. And then of his recovery in military hospitals where "in my loneliness I enacted a version of Frederic Henry's obsession with Catherine Barkley. I fell in love with a nurse ..." This went nowhere, as Fussell never even learned her name. He also talked of his distaste for another junior officer's task, that of censoring the letters of his men. He realized intuitively how insulting it was to the enlisted men, many of whom were years older than he. His account of the circumstances of his own injuries are matter-of-fact. An incoming German shell exploded right above Fussell and two other GIs.
"Its intolerably loud metallic CLANG! did more than deafen me. It sent red-hot metal tearing into my body. One piece went into my right thigh. Another entered my back. When I got my hearing and my senses back, the first thing I did was take a deep breath to see if my lung had been penetrated. When I found it had not, I felt less panicky and, despite the indescribable pain, able to look about me."
The two men flanking Fussell when the shell burst were both killed, a quirky coincidence he never forgot. Besides his account of the war, Fussell continues his story through grad school at Harvard and several teaching jobs thereafter. Given my own military experiences and subsequent return to college and grad school, I found it all most interesting, including the academic intrigue and competition. Paul Fussell has examined his life carefully, and despite numerous books published and other prestigious accomplishments, he still manages to take himself with a grain of salt. His style reminds me just a bit of Andy Rooney, that old 60 Minutes guy, who, incidentally, wrote his own fine WWII memoir, MY WAR (see my review of that). Just last year, Fussell was one of the featured principals, along with his friend Sam Hynes, interviewed extensively by Ken Burns for his PBS documentary, THE WAR. Fussell has been "doing battle" in one important cause or another his whole life, for which I salute him. I enjoyed his book tremendously and recommend it highly. - Tim Bazzett, author of LOVE, WAR & POLIO
- Paperback: 340 pages
- Publisher: Back Bay Books; 1st Back Bay Pbk. Ed edition (January 7, 1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0316290610
- ISBN-13: 978-0316290616
- Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
- Customer Reviews: 34 customer reviews
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Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#589,924 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #440 in Educator Biographies
- #6172 in Military Leader Biographies
- #3597 in Author Biographies
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