American Soldiers - (Modern War Studies) by Peter S Kindsvatter (Paperback)

About the Book

This book is the first to synthesize the wartime experiences of American combat soldiers, from the doughboys of World War I to the grunts of Vietnam. The book draws on histories and memoirs to show that their experiences remain the same regardless of the enemy, terrain, training, or weaponry. 30 photos.

Book Synopsis

Some warriors are drawn to the thrill of combat and find it the defining moment of their lives. Others fall victim to fear, exhaustion, impaired reasoning, and despair. This was certainly true for twentieth-century American ground troops. Whether embracing or being demoralized by war, these men risked their lives for causes larger than themselves with no promise of safe return.

This book is the first to synthesize the wartime experiences of American combat soldiers, from the doughboys of World War I to the grunts of Vietnam. Focusing on both soldiers and marines, it draws on histories and memoirs, oral histories, psychological and sociological studies, and even fiction to show that their experiences remain fundamentally the same regardless of the enemy, terrain, training, or weaponry.

Peter Kindsvatter gets inside the minds of American soldiers to reveal what motivated them to serve and how they were turned into soldiers. He recreates the physical and emotional aspects of war to tell how fighting men dealt with danger and hardship, and he explores the roles of comradeship, leadership, and the sustaining beliefs in cause and country. He also illuminates soldiers' attitudes toward the enemy, toward the rear echelon, and toward the home front. And he tells why some broke down under fire while others excelled.

Here are the first tastes of battle, as when a green recruit reported that "for the first time I realized that the people over the ridge wanted to kill me," while another was befuddled by the unfamiliar sound of bullets whizzing overhead. Here are soldiers struggling to cope with war's stress by seeking solace from local women or simply smoking cigarettes. And here are tales of combat avoidance and fraggings not unique to Vietnam, of soldiers in Korea disgruntled over home-front indifference, and of the unique experiences of African American soldiers in the Jim Crow army.

By capturing the core "band of brothers" experience across several generations of warfare, Kindsvatter celebrates the American soldier while helping us to better understand war's lethal reality--and why soldiers persevere in the face of its horrors.

Review Quotes

"A must read for every military leader."--Peter Mansoor, author of The GI Offensive in Europe

"A superb, compelling analysis of twentieth-century American combat troops that never loses sight of the individual soldier. An important, meticulously documented contribution to our understanding of men-at-arms."--Rick Atkinson, author of An Army at Dawn and The Long Gray Line

"Kindsvatter's book is based firmly on the first-hand accounts of combat by American soldiers and Marines of the World Wars, Korea, and Vietnam. He is a sensitive, skillful mediator between those writers and us."--Russell F. Weigley, author of The American Way of War

"A vivid portrayal of the savagery of war and its human dimensions."--Michael D. Doubler, author of Closing with the Enemy: How GIs Fought the War in Europe, 1944-1945

"A tour de force of historical research and organization. Anyone interested in the behaviour of soldiers in battle should not ignore this benchmark study."--War in History

"This splendid book deserves serious consideration by all who hold evidence to be a prerequisite for opinion. Highly recommended."--Choice

"This is the kind of book we should encourage our soldiers to read, regardless of their years of service or combat experiences. It might just be better preparation than another trip to the National Training Center, and certainly better than another jaunt to the simulation center."--Army

"Kindsvatter thoughtfully blends formal studies, veterans' memoirs, and war-inspired fiction to create a riveting documentary account of how soldiers respond as they progress from basic training to the battlefield. His analysis of how a small, close-knit unit could impose its own structure and norms, proving a more powerful motivator than the overarching 'cause' or high-ranking officers, is especially interesting. A unique study recommended for both public and academic libraries."--Library Journal

"The best analysis of the nature of twentieth-century American combat available."--American Historical Review

"Kindsvatter's sweeping study is a tour de force."--Journal of Military History

"A masterful work."--H-Net Book Reviews, H-War

"This illuminating work is about coping with fear at the foxhole level, and it powerfully conveys the psychology and military sociology of combat."--Booklist

"Offers fascinating, unsentimental arguments about the minds of soldiers."--Publishers Weekly