What a great book, and refreshing in a way. First off, I have no military experience and very little knowledge of such things outside of the Civil War, which I've read a ton about. World War II and the War in the Pacific are fairly recent interests of mine, and I'd really recommend this book for someone like me who is just starting or who wants to get a look at day to day life for a soldier in one of these island battles.
The book is an account of one man's experience on Iwo Jima. That man, Jim Craig was a platoon commander in the US Marine Corps. Craig and his platoon spent much of the first 27 days of the battle right in thick of things, ferreting out Japanese defensive positions well established in caves and underground. Indeed, of the 60 men under Lt. Craig's command on Iwo Jima, only 10 walked off the island with him. 20 of them had been killed and 30 had been wounded and evacuated. In fact over a third of the Marines killed in WWII died on Iwo Jima.
The story itself is presented as various accounts from Craig to his nephew, John Shively. Some are long, some are shorter, all of them have something to say about the overall battle and the life the Marines experienced during the "36 days of hell." The book is not an overview of the entire battle. It is not a military text or an evaluation of the tactics used in the battle. It very much is exactly what it claims to be, "A foxhole view of the epic battle for Iwo Jima." Anyone who is interested in the subject matter would be better for reading it.
Lt. Craig survived the battle and was awarded the Purple Heart. After rehabilitation in Maui, he participated in the US Occupation of Okinawa as an MP. He was discharged from the Marine Corps in 1946.
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