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With the Old Breed cover art

With the Old Breed

Written by: E. B. Sledge
Narrated by: Marc Vietor,Joe Mazzello,Tom Hanks (introduction)
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Publisher's Summary

The celebrated 2010 HBO miniseries The Pacific, winner of eight Emmy Awards, was based on two classic books about the War in the Pacific, Helmet for My Pillow and With The Old Breed. Audible Studios, in partnership with Playtone, the production company co-owned by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, and creator of the award-winning HBO series Band of Brothers, John Adams, and The Pacific, as well as the HBO movie Game Change, has created new recordings of these memoirs, narrated by the stars of the miniseries. James Badge Dale (who portrayed Robert Leckie) and Joseph Mazello (who played Eugene Sledge) bring all the passion and emotion of their riveting television performances to these new audio productions.

With the Old Breed is a modern classic of military history AND has been called "one of the most important personal accounts of war that I have ever read," by distinguished historian John Keegan. Author E. B. Sledge served with the First Marine Division during World War II, and his first-hand narrative is unsurpassed in its sincerity. Sledge's experience shows in this fascinating account of two of the most harrowing and pivotal island battles of the Pacific theater.

On Peleliu and Okinawa, the action was extremely fierce. Amidst oppressive heat and over land obliterated by artillery shells, the combat raged ferociously. Casualties were extreme on both sides, and by the time the Americans had broken through at Okinawa, more than 62,000 Japanese soldiers were dead. Against military policy, Sledge scribbled notes and jammed them into his copy of the New Testament. Those notes form the backbone of what Navy Times said "has been called the best World War II memoir of an enlisted man."

BONUS AUDIO: Tom Hanks, one of the executive producers, has written and narrated an original introduction to With the Old Breed where he describes his appreciation for the book's author, the narrators, and the soldiers who had fought in the cauldron of the Pacific Theater during World War II.

©1981 E.B. Sledge (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

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a must read/listen for ALL civilians

armed forces ervice vets, emergency services, law enforcement vetrans, will be able to relate to the emotions of this book. in that we have common ground. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, SACRIFICE AND ENDURANCE TO WALK ON THERE AFTER... Peace Be With You.

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Outstanding and Enlightening!

The narration of this important work of history is so well done! It isn’t often we get to read about the point of view of an infantry man. The detail of what he has seen is, in my mind, important for those learning about history and war, and why we should do our utmost to avoid war.

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horrifying yet devilishly exciting

Without a doubt the greatest book I've read on WW2. Although not for the faint of heart or the close minded, this book will blow the socks off any reader interested in WW2.

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Just amazing.

Listened to this right after the Band of Brothers Book. Paints such a real and different picture of war. So descriptive you feel like you’re actually there. Already recommended it to some friends. Overall the best war book I’ve listened to yet.

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Exceptionally vivid

I bought it on a whim and I am very glad I did. After slogging through the first two lord of the rings books I needed something with a little more action and this definitely fit that need. I felt like I was there beside Sledge the whole time.

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Thank you Eugene.

incredibly important piece of work. Every highschool student in the USA should cover this book.

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Top notch.

An excellent book. Provides a visceral, gritty, and nasty insight into a foot soldier's life.

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Incredible story

An account that accurately details the reality of War, it’s affects & the ultimate sacrifices made.

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Should be required reading in High School!

I couldn't stop listening! it was brutally honest but poignant and very very real about the horrors of the Pacific war. A perfectly written memoir.

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An amazing account of war

Sledge cuts through to the harsh reality of war in the rawest way imaginable

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