INCREDIBLE! WELL-RESEARCHED, COMPLETE & UNBIASED!

I thought I had "WW II'd" myself into a coma, listening to or reading more than 50 books and watching a kazillion documentaries and online videos about World War II in the past year. I was just about to pass on this 25 hour account when I became outraged by one of the written reviews. While giving the book an overall favorable review, without the 5-star rating of the other written reviews, this listener claimed that her only criticism was that the book overdid the contributions of African-Americans to the war. REALLY? This is one of the very few books NOT written by a black author that even MENTIONS the many minority members of the military who fought in ALL of our wars, including the Civil War. Blacks were originally seen by the US as "not fit for combat duty" and were given positions as cooks, supply clerks, deck hands, etc. Eleanor Franklin changed all of that.

Was this reviewer aware of the MAJOR support that the 761st Tank Battalion - the first all-black tank battalion - gave to General Patton, helping him win the war? Black soldiers were relegated to what the military termed as "iron coffins" due the cumbersome movement of the tanks and the ever-present carbon monoxide leaking INSIDE the vehicles (often killing black soldiers silently, to be found by their comrades sitting up, eyes open, mid-sentence). Yet, Patton openly claimed "that a colored soldier cannot think fast enough to fight in armor." (In the 1970 film "Patton", the 761st unit was depicted as WHITE soldiers coming to the general's aid!) While saving the lives of hundreds white "comrades", who openly called the members of the 761st "niggers" and "monkeys", the unit suffered 156 casualties; 24 men killed and 88 wounded, in the month of November 1944 ALONE! The unit also lost 14 tanks and another 20 damaged in combat. In December 1944, the battalion was rushed to the aid of the 101st Airborne Division at Bastogne. After the Battle of the Bulge, the unit opened the way for the U.S. 4th Armored Division into Germany during an action that breached the Siegfried Line. In the final days of the war in Europe, the 761st was one of the first American units to reach the Steyr in Austria, at the Enns River, where they met with Ukrainians of the Soviet Army. THAT IS JUST ONE UNIT IN ONE BRANCH OF THE MILITARY!

Black Americans fought and died with distinction in the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force. But the real tragedy is that, after serving their country in order to stop the industrial murder of the European Jews at the hands of the Nazis and helping to end the war so that thousands of American, British, Australian and Chinese military and civilians could be liberated from the unparalleled cruelty in Japanese prisoner of war camps, black Americans returned to the United States to sit in the back of buses, drink from "Colored Only" water fountains, be assaulted, lynched and murdered, to be denied the same veterans benefits given to their white counterparts such as employment, housing, education, medical care, etc. Sgt. Isaac Woodard Jr. was BLINDED by South Carlina police officers while in uniform, just hours after being honorably discharged from the US Army!

These men's accomplishments were ignored by the military and America, their records of bravery suspiciously "lost". These AMERICANS were not honored for decades. After being rejected countless times, the members of the 761st Tank Battalion were finally recognized in 1978, eventually receiving 1 Medal of Honor, 296 Purple Hearts, 11 Silver Stars, and 69 Bronze Stars. In 1994, the THREE surviving members of the Navy ship USS Mason were awarded a letter of commendation for "meritorious service". The famous Tuskegee Airmen were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 2007 - given mostly to their widows or posthumously. The black Marines weren't recognized until 2012.

That said, this book - TWENTY-FOUR HOURS AND 58 MINUTES LONG - served the black Americans who fought and died in World War II both fairly and without undue bias. They were an integral component of the war effort and for anyone to disparage an author giving credit where it is long overdue smacks of the continued institutional racism that the U.S. is still guilty of.

I know that my review will receive more "Not Helpful" ratings than "Helpful" but I really don't care! I'm willing, once again, to stick my neck out to say what needs to be said. This is a great book about a major historical event. Black Americans were a part of that war and deserve to be included just like Hitler, Hirohito, and Patton. ALL three of those "men" were the worse racists ever but no one has a thing to say about the hundreds of accounts written about them!

If you want to learn more about our contributions in war, check out "Brothers In Arms", a fantastic book about the 761st written by NBA great Kareem Abdul Jabbar. You will be surprised to learn that baseball legend, Jackie Robinson, was a member of the 761st! Truth be told, there can NEVER be too much revealed about the bravery and heroism of the black members of American military ranks!

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241 people found this helpful

Excellent Overview of a Catastrophic Event

I randomly found out about this book from the recommended history category books on Audible. I've always been a history buff and have read countless articles and books about World War II.

There are several stories and facts that kept even the typical WW2 enthusiast wanting more. These days, it's hard to find non-recycled material in books like these.

You'll find that much of the history is told in the words of soldiers or journalists embedded with the American troops or sailors. It definitely focuses on the American side of the war, but I recommend it to anyone who would like to know more about World War II without getting into the boring details. If you're interested in more WW2; give "Pacific Crucible" a shot, I think you'll like it just as well.

Overall: This book was perfect for the layman's WW2 interest. It was rarely boring and kept my attention throughout most of the reading. The narration was good as well. I'd give it a 4.5 for sure.

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116 people found this helpful

The story of America in WW2

This is not the story of WW2. Its the story of the USA in WW2.

For a book that claims that it 'covers the entire war -- on land, at sea, and in the air' it pretty much ignores the first few years of the war. Anything before Pearl Harbor is effectively a footnote and is breezed past with no detail. After Pearl Harbor it focuses exclusively on the USA. Little mention is made of the events of the Eastern front or other non US events.

For what it does it does really well. It's just it is extremely false advertising in it's description and scope.

Narration by Kramer is great though.

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78 people found this helpful

Best written, best narrator

Hands down among the best of 20+ related books on this topic I've read or listened to in the past decade. A generous, over-arching history of WWll, factoid-filled and fleshed out with choice, heartfelt recollections of the men and women who were there, in broad spectrum of their capacities. Wrapped up with the perfect ender.

Excellent, excellent, excellent. And at 25hrs a prize and a half.

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63 people found this helpful

Amazing Inspiring Thought Provoking

What other book might you compare The Story of World War II to and why?

Donald Miller 'the Story of World War II' stands out as exceptional just like 'Masters of the Air - America’s Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany '

Which scene was your favorite?

The ending with its amazing insights to the 'casualty of war' is truly epic! It should be reading material for all young people

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I'm not a emotional guy but on many occasions I couldn't help but feel awe and amazment of the people and the times. In so many ways I wish today's society had some of the values and characters of that time. I am glad however that we don't have all of them though!

Any additional comments?

The soldiers reflections many years after the war are truly moving and must never be forgotten, never treated lightly. We could do well for the future if we stop and look back to the past and be inspired and scared of the highest and lowest of humanity brought out during such a troubled time!

While this may not be a book you will listen to from start to finish, you may find yourself like me wanting to take a break from it every now and again. Nevertheless, it is one you will always find yourself coming back to learn from, not just of the historical details but because of the wonderful perspective the author brings to the story through the accounts of the people involved!

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45 people found this helpful

A One Sided Story

The author calls this a story of WWII, yet he barely touches major plot points. He spends more time talking about a single Pacific Island battle than he does talking about the entire Eastern European front. This would have you believe that the battle of Kursk never happened and the taking of peleliu was as important as the battle of Stalingrad.

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28 people found this helpful

Hands down the best World War ll book I have read

Where does The Story of World War II rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Close to the top is not the top. The personal accounts in this book make the war live in a way that is missing from most history books.

What other book might you compare The Story of World War II to and why?

This is my second book by Donald Miller and I will order his book on New York tomorrow.
This is the book to read to immerse your self in the battles and the history of the war.

What does Michael Kramer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narration is a s good as it gets.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The ending is very touching as tells of how solders came to grips with there emotions from the war. It was interesting how solders would not talk about the war because they did not feel others understood unless they had been there.

Any additional comments?

Listen to this book if you have any interest in World War ll forget the others this is the book to start with

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25 people found this helpful

Tremendous Detail

It is naïve to think we understand what it was like to fight in World War II. However, the author does a wonderful job of blending a global view of the conflict along with explicit details of the horrors of war and what it was like to be on the front lines and beyond. I learned a great deal from this book that I had not previously known about the war. I would definitely recommend it. The performance of the narrator was flawless.

My only criticism is that, at times I felt as if the book should be renamed "How African Americans Won the War". While it is noteworthy to point out the contributions and misconceptions of African Americans in WWII, the author seems to overdo it in my opinion while glossing over the contributions of other ethnic groups such as Japanese Americans.

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17 people found this helpful

Painting Pictures through experience

What I loved about listening to this book was that I really felt like I was listening to the people tell their stories. They made everything seem even worse than I imagined it myself, which is why I choose to learn about war.

We must all learn from the lessons of generations past and remember that war is terrible, this book really drives that home.

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16 people found this helpful

Excellent Review of historical data

This was an excellent book! I was surprised to hear a story about one of my childhood friends father. I always wondered why he seemed so quiet and reserved when I knew him in the late 50's and 60's. Now I know. I highly recommend this book.

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9 people found this helpful