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Industry: Email Alert RSS FeedHonor Untarnished: A West Point Graduate's Memoir of World War II
Military Review, March-April, 2004 by Dominic J. Caraccilo
HONOR UNTARNISHED: A West Point Graduate's Memoir of World War II, General Donald V. Bennett (Ret.) and William R. Forstchen, Forge Books, New York, 2003, 320 pages, $25.95.
What sets Honor Untarnished: A West Point Graduate's Memoir in World War II apart from most World War II memoirs is its candor; it is a straightforward narrative of battle command at the tactical level. This engrossing story will appeal to history buffs and academicians alike because the author, General Donald V. Bennett, U.S. Army, Retired, experienced the battlefields of World War II, survived to tell about them, then served at the highest ranks of the U.S. military.
Each year, hundreds of books are published about World War II. Most are written by historians trying to capture the essence of battle from manuscripts, notes, or diaries of foot soldiers who after 60 years or so attempt to capture their experiences as enlisted men. However, Bennett's experiences as a lieutenant colonel at the tactical level of command provide a unique perspective on the operational reasoning behind his units' actions in North Africa, Normandy, and the infamous Battle of the Bulge.
Bennett and co-author William R. Forstchen, an acclaimed military author, bring the truth to bear on some intriguing topics. For instance, many have seen the Hollywood enactment of the chaos surrounding the beach landings in Normandy portrayed in the movie Saving Private Ryan (DreamWorks, Glendale, CA, 1998). Bennett's depiction maintains the chaotic nature of the landings that fateful day. However, he brings a sense of reality to the density of soldiers involved in the beach assault.
Another revealing insight is Bennett's version of the infamous "slapping incident" that caused so much turmoil for General George S. Patton in Sicily. Such first-hand accounts make this book better than the average World War II history.
Honor Untarnished, an enduring contribution to the successes of men who fought the Nation's greatest war, pays tribute to the members of the 58th and 62d Armored Artillery Battalions in which Bennett served so proudly in defense of freedom.
LTC Dominic J. Caraccilo,
USA, Vincenza, Italy
COPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Army CGSC
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning
