Two Good WWII Books - You Might Not Have Read

[VaTom]

Just finished one book and reading the second. Both are about campaigns in the war that don't get as much written about as some other. I highly recommend both.

"Against All Odds" - The latest by Alex Kershaw about 4 Medal of Honor winners from the 3rd Infantry Division (including Audie Murphy). The 3rd Infantry Division had the most MOH winners in Europe. They fought in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and Sothern France/Germany (including fierce fighting in the Colmar Pocket where Murphy won the MOH).

"The Matthews Men" by William Geroux. If you live on the east coast of the US and particularly from Virginia you will like this book. It is about the German U-Boat campaign against merchant shipping along the US east coast and Carribean. It highlights men from Matthews County, Va. which is on the Chesapeake Bay and where many Merchant Mariners have come from since Colonial times. A lot of detail and personal recollections about the sinking of ships often within sight of shore and tactics of U-Boats.

Enjoy!

 

[Rudi]

Those look good. "Operation Drumbeat" covers the U-Boot attacks on the east coast from the German side. At night they watched the lights of NYC and listened to American music on the radio.

 

[desi2358]

I can also recommend "The Matthews Men", a really good book. The author also wrote a book on some of the ships and crews from convoy PQ-17. "The Ghost Ships Of Archangel" which is an excellent read. I haven't read "Against All Odds", sounds like one I need to pick up and read

 

[Mike 139]

Reference “ Against all odds”, this is a book I’ll get and read…James Arness, aka “ Matt Dillion” of Gunsmoke fame served in the 3rd Infantry Division as a Rifleman and received a Bronze Star along with a leg wound at Anzio that caused his permanent limp….the show ran for 20 years with Him.

 

[Truckman]

Not to browbeat the OP, but just a point concerning choice of words...No US serviceman ever "won" a medal of valor at any level...Such decorations are always earned, then awarded by a grateful nation...The book recommendations have been added to my list, thanks......Ben

 

[VaTom]

Not to browbeat the OP, but just a point concerning choice of words...No US serviceman ever "won" a medal of valor at any level...Such decorations are always earned, then awarded by a grateful nation...The book recommendations have been added to my list, thanks......Ben

Correct you are. Poor choice of words. Thanks! A couple of pictures from the site where Audie Murphey earned the MOH. I was fortunate to visit there a couple of years ago when my wife and I did a river cruise on the Rhine.

VaTom

 

[meaneyedcatz]

I have the Matthews Men but I’m in the middle of a different book.
Thanks for the info

 

[moosedog]

Thanks for the heads up. Always looking for new reading material.

 

[Hair Trigger]

Just finished one book and reading the second. Both are about campaigns in the war that don't get as much written about as some other. I highly recommend both.

"Against All Odds" -

"The Matthews Men" by William Geroux. If you live on the east coast of the US and particularly from Virginia you will like this book. It is about the German U-Boat campaign against merchant shipping along the US east coast and Carribean.

Enjoy!

I'll add both to my reading list. It will be nice to compare "The Matthews Men" to another one I'd recommend about the Atlantic war against German U-Boats: "Torpedo Junction". This one is by Homer Hickam, and is an in-depth history of the carnage wrought by German submarines along the Atlantic coast. Hickam is known for his books chronicling his youth in the West Virginia coal country of the late 1950's, including "Rocket Boys", made later into the film "October Skies". He went on to a career with NASA, and then taught scuba diving. He has dived on several of the wrecks off the Atlantic coast.

 

[fordson]

Yes, I also read lots of military history. These are mostly WWI and WWII. There are several more bookcases, Civil War, Revolutionary War, VN, etc, but didn’t want to be too ostentatious.

Don’t know why these came out sideways……

 

[OLDSTER]

The very first book I remember reading and enjoying was "Guadalcanal Diary" by Richard Tregaskis.

 

[SS336]

I’m reading this one at the moment. Very interesting take on the Norden bomb sight, precision bombing and how it failed and why.

temp pic hosting

 

[Heymatt]

Any one aware of books covering the 27th Infantry on Okinawa?

 

[IronSkillet]

Against All Odds

Thanks to the OP, finished reading Against All Odds (Kindle)found it a very enjoyable read.

 

[MDF4]

[FONT=&quot]Flyboys: James Bradley[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]True story about the capture and imprisonment of U.S.Naval aviators on Chi Chi Jima 1944. Not an easy book to read and came away with a very bad taste for our opponent...expletives withheld.
[/FONT]

 

[jchodur]

Another Recommendation

I recommend:

Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler by Lynn Olsen.

Fascinating book with a lot of history and intrigue.
She fought for the entire war, was captured twice and got away and survived the war.
Little is heard of her because back then women were not supposed to be capable of those things.

 

[mtgianni]

Per my librarian, WW 2 remains the most current topic in fiction. I don't think it is top in Non Fiction but it is up there.

 

[Dave_n]

Those look good. "Operation Drumbeat" covers the U-Boot attacks on the east coast from the German side. At night they watched the lights of NYC and listened to American music on the radio.

They also used the silhouettes of merchant vessels going up past Florida when the FL and SC gov'ts resisted dousing their lights because it would reduce the income of the shore store owners, to say nothing of the USN refusing the offer of 10 A/S vessels from the RN who were "rather experienced" in coastal convoying, and finally refusing to convoy for roughly 6 months because "it was not invented here (the NIH response)". The Ace (Heidkamp?) U-boat commander in those early UBoat raids died around a year or so ago at 101. Dave_n

 

[Dave_n]

Yes, I also read lots of military history. These are mostly WWI and WWII. There are several more bookcases, Civil War, Revolutionary War, VN, etc, but didn’t want to be too ostentatious.

Don’t know why these came out sideways……

I too have a rather substantial number of books on Military History (mainly Naval) but little on the US Civil War and a few on the Revolutionary war (ex-Brit). However I will have to start culling the collection as I am now 83 and my wife insists that I do. Anyone know of a good bookstore that might be interested in purchasing any of them? Dave_n

 

[Countrycuz]

This thread motivated me to look for a book from my youth. In the attic of a house we moved to was a book " The 100 Best True Stories of World War II". Read it multiple times. Short stories and book excerpts from those who were there. Just found a used copy on Amazon.
.