Captivating Narrative

This book plays out like a Screenplay. McKay Jenkins documents the recruitment, training, and deployment of a group of WWII soldiers (The 10th Mountain Division) that is something out of a Hollywood script: including Olympians, European ex-pat sportsmen/soldiers, cartoonishly dedicated patriots, thrill-seeking goof-offs, eccentrics, and playboys. Jenkins admirably avoids the temptation to give these legitimate "characters" a script - instead sticking to military documents, media accounts, and interviews.. emphasizing the authenticity of the chronicle. That said, the operations in the Pacific Theatre, Italy, and Austria almost have the feel of choreography - this book documents undeniably true events that feel cinematic.

Grover Gardner turns in a spectacular performance that contributes to my favorable impression of this book. Yes, he reads much too slowly, but his diction, timbre, cadence, and tone are exemplary. I would consider listening to a project just on the strength of Gardner's name being attached to it.

I tend to rate audiobooks fairly harshly - because I have listened to hundreds of them (check out my Listener Page). I guess if you're looking for a scholarly work of Military History, you might be disappointed with this offering.. but if you're satisfied with a capably-written distracting True chronicle that almost feels like Fiction, I am quite comfortable rating this audiobook 9.5 stars out of 10. It was offered as part of the 'Plus' catalogue but would actually merit a Credit if they asked for it.

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