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gracefool's review against another edition
2.0
Had completely different expectations for this book. After reading 'With the Old Breed', I expected this to be an equally well written and emotional account of events. It is neither.
This man feels at stark odds with the potrayal I first saw on HBOs the Pacific. And in comparison to reading Euegene Sledge's account of war, in all its harrowing detail, Leckie's account feels a bit like naughty school boys, except in military service during world war 2.
His violent outbursts towards his fellow military men also make it a harder read. And while of course there are always going to be 'dated' opinions from an American soldier's perspective from the 40s, Leckie's seemed more flagrant and commonplace than Sledge's. Sledge I could accept as being more man of his time, because he had deep reflections on how human beings treated each other in war, often by ceasing to see the other as human. Leckie doesn't have the same introspection.
I told myself I would still be willing to read a WW2 memoir in spite of finding the author disagreeable, but very little of this book has actually been about the Pacific Theatre. Last I remember, Leckie got caught for being somewhere he shouldn't have been while in Melbourne, and was placed in solitary confinement. And I realised most of Leckies suffering was self-perpetuated, by being needlessly violent to a patrolling officer and by gallivanting about Melbourne. And so I finally gave up.
This man feels at stark odds with the potrayal I first saw on HBOs the Pacific. And in comparison to reading Euegene Sledge's account of war, in all its harrowing detail, Leckie's account feels a bit like naughty school boys, except in military service during world war 2.
His violent outbursts towards his fellow military men also make it a harder read. And while of course there are always going to be 'dated' opinions from an American soldier's perspective from the 40s, Leckie's seemed more flagrant and commonplace than Sledge's. Sledge I could accept as being more man of his time, because he had deep reflections on how human beings treated each other in war, often by ceasing to see the other as human. Leckie doesn't have the same introspection.
I told myself I would still be willing to read a WW2 memoir in spite of finding the author disagreeable, but very little of this book has actually been about the Pacific Theatre. Last I remember, Leckie got caught for being somewhere he shouldn't have been while in Melbourne, and was placed in solitary confinement. And I realised most of Leckies suffering was self-perpetuated, by being needlessly violent to a patrolling officer and by gallivanting about Melbourne. And so I finally gave up.
askmashka's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
dtab62's review against another edition
5.0
Tom Hanks called this book "a grand and epic prose poem." I can't improve on that. This is a great book.
elwoodradley's review against another edition
5.0
Really good memoir of Leckie's experience on Guadalcanal, New Britain and Peleliu. I really enjoyed the way Leckie told the story as if telling it directly to you, the reader. It takes you deep into the jungles of the Pacific and the terror that these young men experienced and the horrific things they were witness to.
iceberg0's review against another edition
4.0
This was an astonishing read. A memoir that is clearly locked in its own time but is all the more interesting because it is. The purple prose of Leckie's contemporary newspaper writers is apparent throughout but there is an honesty and a vulnerability in his writing that shines through. This is the story of a soldiers life and it is well told.
bclev's review against another edition
4.0
Good book. Hits some points that veterans of all wars can relate to.
duparker's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars. I read this after watching The Pacific. It was much more personal than I expected and felt genuine. It is part autobiography, part history and all human. I can't imagine what it would be like to have been stuck in these situations in the Pacific theater of WWII. What a world.
ayaktruk's review against another edition
3.0
I haven't read a lot of soldierly journals so I didn't know what I was getting into. I found my way to Robert Leckie by way of the Tom Hanks/Steven Spielberg mini-series, The Pacific.
Leckie is a remarkable writer, with a vocabulary that often sent me to thesaurus.com to look up words he used in his descriptions of the hell and beauty (yes beauty, which hell makes one appreciate even more).
Moment of clarity from this read...came at a local Mexican restaurant as I dined on fish soup and read this book. A young waitress showed interest in what I was reading, to which I replied, "oh, just some war novel." She proceeded to tell me that she showed interest because of the words,, "Parris Island" in the title, followed with the observation that she was married to a Marine.
Like the only other soldier journal I've read (Letters from Iwo Jima), Leckie's book made me appreciate the sacrifices of those we've chosen (or volunteered) to be our warriors, in time of war and peace. Like my father.
Leckie is a remarkable writer, with a vocabulary that often sent me to thesaurus.com to look up words he used in his descriptions of the hell and beauty (yes beauty, which hell makes one appreciate even more).
Moment of clarity from this read...came at a local Mexican restaurant as I dined on fish soup and read this book. A young waitress showed interest in what I was reading, to which I replied, "oh, just some war novel." She proceeded to tell me that she showed interest because of the words,, "Parris Island" in the title, followed with the observation that she was married to a Marine.
Like the only other soldier journal I've read (Letters from Iwo Jima), Leckie's book made me appreciate the sacrifices of those we've chosen (or volunteered) to be our warriors, in time of war and peace. Like my father.
ultimatumman's review against another edition
4.0
I wonder if memoir writing has changed since 1957, or if Robert Leckie just had a different writing style than other memoirs that have been written about soldiers. The narrative felt almost a little hollywood in the telling, but it never felt like unauthentic. Leckie gives some interesting insights into the life of a marine in the pacific. I love reading about history from the perspective of those that lived through it, and this marine tells his unique perspective with humor and honesty.