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Summary: A Must-Read Book
Review: Beyond Valor is a watershed in the reporting of World War II oral histories -- i.e., the actual participants of history describe the events they participated in in their own words, free from editorial embellishment and hindsight analysis. Mr. O'Donnell diligently interviewed hundreds of American paratrooper and Ranger veterans from the European Theater of Operations in World War II. What he has assembled in Beyond Valor is a collection of personal vignettes from young Americans that describe what hell was like during the bloodiest war ever. These men take us through training, North Africa, Sicily and Italy, Normandy and Southern France, Holland and Belgium, Germany, and going back home. Unlike other war books that use only selected quotes from veterans, embellish their words and otherwise bog you down with information and details that reveal nothing new, Mr. O'Donnell lets each veteran tell his full story. In some cases, veterans for the first time ever release emotions and bitter memories that have been bottled up inside their hearts and minds for 60 years. Many of the stories are powerful and moving, even emotionally overwhelming -- like the Rangers that describe the helpless feeling of seeing their buddies get cut down by machine gun fire right next to them as they rush up to attack a German bunker. In the vein of Stephen Ambrose, Patrick O'Donnell has put together an easy-to-read book with helpful maps that goes deep into the heart of combat as seen from America's living heroes. This book -- a tribute to the greatest generation -- is a definite keeper.
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Summary: honest slice of combat experience
Review: I have read O'Donnell's Into the Rising Sun which I thought was a superb book that gives you the honest slice of combat experience as told by the veterans. This book was written before that one so I expected the same and was not disappointed. Many of these stories get told 45-50 years after the fact, memories may fade but experiences and understanding of combat does not. Once more, this book collects a short set of stories as told by the veterans of their combat experiences. The stories were short but honest and with far more insight then most World War II movies put together. Some of them come with a late hour confessions of killing of enemy POWs or wounded enemy, some time in the heat of battle, some time out of need for survival. One man even kept photos of the three dead Germans from their paybooks. Maybe some of the more negative reviews didn't like that, after all it was more comfortable to know that ONLY Germans and Japanese troop were the ones that murdered POWs and shoot defenseless wounded soldiers. Shocking that we Americans did something like that in war. (It also allowed me to have a new perception whenever I read about enemy soldiers shooting American POWs or woundeds in battle...maybe they felt anger and hatred toward the Americans who were killing their buddies, comrades and mentors. Who say war was fair, eh?)The book is written in a very readable form, its well organized and quality of the stories varies in details. But you will get a good slice of understanding of what it may be like, to be a soldier in war. Reading a book like this may also give an understanding that soldiers of other nations, even our enemies may have gone through the same experience.
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Summary: Beyond Valor Equals Great WWII Book!
Review: I thought this book was a great book! It seriously brought out some great stories of the Rangers! There are so many details that are brought out in the book that are great. With maps showing how invasions were planned was great. It also had some great pictures that the war veterans had taken. I rate this book FIVE STARS! Awesome,it's a must read book if your a WWII fan or just want to learn some things.
Rating:
Summary: Beyond Valor
Review: Beyond Valor is a book that gives you a look at war through the eye of not one man but gives you a look at war through the eyes of 50 men. World War 2 vets reveal the heart of combat from the landing on Italy to the sweet boat ride home. I would suggest this book to anyone who wants to read a book that will have you thinking what it was like to be fighting in a war. And shows you a real look at war and not that Hollywood bull look that movies give you. So if you what a book that is suspenseful and interesting look at war. Buy Beyond Valor by Patrick K. O'Donnell and see the realty of war. If you like this book check out Into The Rising Sun.
Rating: 
Summary: I Hate to Do It
Review: I really do hate to pan this book, but I have to. The author has done a great job collecting first hand accounts from veteran airborne, rangers and special forces soldiers from World War II. He has transcribed them, ordered them by campaign/battle and provided some context so that the reader can place them within the broader scope of the war. The problem I have is that that is all he has done, and while this preserves these first hand accounts and provides a valuable resource, it does not make for a readable treatment of the subject. There is a reason most of these men have not written books telling their story and a reason why you cannot just dictate a book. It makes for difficult and sometimes even painful reading. I don't want to be mean or vicious, and the author has done a great service by collecting all of these first hand accounts, but it almost seems as if he lost his motivation when it came to putting it all together and telling the story. O'Connell, has basically served as little more than an editor piecing together collected episodes, making little effort to put it all together into a comprehensive story, leaving the reader with a disjointed rambling. As a readable history, I have to pan this book. The saving grace is that authors and researchers will have the collected material to use in future works. P-)
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Summary: A Stirring First-Hand Account of the War in Europe
Review: Author Patrick K. O'Donnell has taken oral testimonies from surviving veterans of the war in Europe and put them together in this excellent book. Beginning in August, 1942 with the Dieppe raid to the fall of Germany in 1945, these men give heart-felt accounts of what it was like to be on the front lines of combat. Each veteran has his own unique story to tell. Some men sweated out long nights under artillery fire, while others patrolled deep into German-held territory. O'Donnell also does a wonderful job of describing the bond that formed between these men. Each man was willing to give his own life so the others in his platoon might survive. It was this uncommon valor among the men that helped them survive and, ultimately, win the war. The book also contains excellent commentary by the author. He sets the scene for each chapter with a compelling narrative about the battle or campaign that is covered, then he lets the men who actually fought there bring the battle to life. My favorite section of the book dealt with the siege of Bastogne and the battle for the Hurtgen Forest. The images created by O'Donnell are very vivid and will surely remain in my mind. I usually read about the Pacifc theater, but this book has opened my eyes to the European conflict as well. I give this book my highest recommendation. Oral histories are the best way to learn about history, and this book keeps up that tradition. I also recommend O'Donnell's excellent work about the Pacific theater entitled "Into the Rising Sun".
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Summary: "Beyond Valor" shows war's ugly face
Review: I just finished reading the book so my feelings of it are quite fresh. It's a bloody book and some of it made an impact on me - as this review will indicate. Having (myself) served 4 years as an Infantryman in the 82nd Airborne's 504th and 508th Parachute Infantry Regiments and 16 years in other units - including armor, I found this book of great interest. In fact, one of the men in this book (Funk) used to visit my unit in the 82nd Airborne every year to drink beers, swap stories, and enjoy the comraderie with soldiers of his old unit from WW2 years. But there is one aspect of this book that opened my eyes to another image of WW2. While I appreciate and honor the soldiers and their sacrifices depicted this book, I was also shocked at the amount of cold-blooded and deliberate killing (murdering) of unarmed POWS and wounded German soldiers who begged for medical treatment and mercy outright. Yes, these things happen in a war of the magnitude of WW2. But I don't see any 'valor' in killing the wounded and unarmed POWS - there wasn't any valor in it. In fact, I see something "Beyond Valor" - but in the different direction - towards the despicable. In certain cases it can be argued that these men's airborne mission put them in strategic positions where taking prisoners was more diffucult than conventional soldiers - but that was not the case most of the time. If you think I am being squeamish, read the book and see if you aren't shocked as well at some of the recollections. It shows another side to our American War Hero's from WW2. I think that revealing these incidents of attrocities marries us with the rest of the world's humanity - as we often vainly think, possibly through Holloywood, that our soldiers possess golden, savior of the world-like qualities. Just because they all wore the same uniform does not imply that they were all alike in any way. Beyond the uniform, the youthful face, resides an individual. "Beyond Valor" is proof that war brings out the best and worst. Now at the same time, these same men, many decades later feel a great remorse and burden over such acts - in most cases sobbing elderly tears to this day when recollecting such things for the book. They see their faces and it haunts. I think that these were decent, 'normal' men and that the 'attrocicties' they reflect upon only serves to show another sacrifice they made - perhaps their souls - or at least their human conscience - that the war inflicted upon their young lives. Put in their situation, how would today's generation act? I don't judge them. "Beyond Valor" actually opened my eyes to what the ugly face of war can do to a man's psyche. I consider this aspect of their service - this less-than Valor like aspect - a hidden, silent sacrifice that these men made for America and freedom's cause - and therefore, while being appalled, further respect them - though under American military law - then and now - what some of them did to POWS and wounded was illegal and - Beyond Valor. Because I am a 20-year Army veteran with 4 as an airborne squad leader in some of the same units these men served in - I want to make it clear that I do NOT judge them for these things but rather honor them for the silent and hidden sacrifice they made that this book revealed. The war stories in themselves - combat operations of great courage, eating crappy K-Rat's, getting drunk, getting wounded, seeing buddies killed - the immense trauma of it all, while historically informative and interesting, did not show me any new revelations of war than I have not experienced or at least read about. Ultimately, if the reader honestly reads what these guys went through and banishes all romantic or even patriotic notions he may have about war, Beyond Valor makes a huge anti-war statement. It is said, that only the living continue to suffer while the dead rest in peace - I think that this book proves and exemplifies that saying - and it does it in spades. I salute you veterans - All the Way - Airborne!
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Summary: Learn what it's like to be in the action
Review: I read this book in a few evenings. I couldn't put it down. I can start to understand the utter confusion and fear of intense battle. These poor guys went through Hell! It makes me savor my freedom all the more. As I read, I came to understand that these were "ordinary" guys doing extraordinary things. I would highly recommend reading this book and the sequel, "Into the Rising Sun" by the same author.
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Summary: Almost Beyond Belief!
Review: Beyond Valor is a compilation of interviews compiled into a sequential narration of the Allied elite forces (Airborne, Rangers, and SAS) and the experiences of their personnel told in vivid first person accounts. The stories are personal, emotional, painful and ultimately gruesome. These are descriptions of combat as can only be told by individuals who have been at the sharp end. Combat stories are told that occurred at distances of ranging from long range artillery to hand to hand knife fights. Several unifying themes occur in these stories, primarily tales of comrades, pain, suffering, fear, and loss. Most stories include mention of friends lost in the prime of their lives in the course of the great service these men provided to the world.
One very useful aspect of this book is the honest candor of the interviews. There are several accounts of prisoners being killed by American troops, especially in the moment immediately following combat or the loss of friends. Proof in my mind of the honesty of the accounts, it is hard to imagine any army that has ever existed where emotions didn't boil over and create this kind of murderous hatred. These accounts are particularly poignant and filled with regret and self incrimination, even when telling of deeds witnessed not performed. It is refreshing to see a book that documents the American perspective from a first person account of these kinds of unfortunate events, it is only propaganda to think that only Japanese and German troops shot prisoners. It is the unfortunate reality of troops in the intense stress and devalued existence that is front line combat.
This book highlights the uncertainties of life at the front and the odd twists of fate that can dictate survival. The luck of all those who speak from these pages is clear, nearly every account contains a near miss or a minor wound of some sort. Most accounts include the names of friends lost and of the intense pride these men felt to part of the Airborne, SAS or the Rangers. This text is an excellent compilation of first person accounts that tell the tale of the life of the enlisted trooper in these elite organizations.
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Summary: Oral History Collection of Elite Soldiers
Review: I often don't enjoy oral histories. They tend to be choppy, and under- or over-edited, and don't read well. They also have a can't-see-the-trees-for-the-forest weakness that's almost inevitable, given the way they are collected. They do tend to be valuable at assessing what affect various things had on front-line troops, and things like that. However, this book got good reviews, so I thought I would read it. The book is divided into chapters, each covering a campaign in which the United States Army airborne or ranger forces participated. There are also a few sections dealing with the 1st Special Service Force, which served in Italy and southern France. The book deals with only these forces, and this is probably my biggest criticism of the book: the elite forces get all of the book's attention. A couple of paratroopers who have told their stories elsewhere recount new anecdotes here. There is one account of the landing in southern France from a member of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team's anti-tank platoon, because they landed in gliders during the invasion. This points up one of the weaknesses of focusing on the "elite" forces the way the book does: the 442nd wasn't elite, but this anti-tank platoon becomes elite when they land in a glider. I think many would differ from this conclusion. Given that, and the weaknesses that all oral histories have, the book is still very good. There are moments in the accounts when you just want to cry, given what happened in particular situations. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in World War II, especially those interested in combat involving these formations.
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