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Summary: History from those that made it......
Review: I was amazed and shocked by this account of sacrifice and bravery from those Americans that fought in Africa and Europe. Never have I been so appreciative of my grandfather's generation for countless sacrifices they made in WWII. I've read numerous historical accounts of WWII and none of my prior readings affected me the way that this book has. If you want to know what really happened from those Americans that survived some of the most brutal battles of the African and European theater, this is a must read. Be prepared for an honesty that will take you into taboo subjects like prisoner execution that you won't read about in mainstream history books.
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Summary: Five Stars!
Review: Beyond Valor is one the the best books I've ever read. It captures the heroism of American young men who risked everything to spearhead victory in WWII.These men are the few remaining heroes we have, in an age when we are surrounded by false heroes such as sports and rock stars. We have a duty to honor them and preserve their stories. Too many Americans, particularly young Americans, do not know and understand what these men went through for our country and the world. These men are also forerunners to the same elite units: 101st Airborne, Rangers, and Special Forces that are protecting our freedom today. Freedom is not free and these men (and their comrades who did not return)paid the ultimate price for the freedom we enjoy today. I'll have a different perspective on Memorial Day. I also found Mr. O'Donnell's recent book on the Pacific, INTO THE RISING SUN, excellent and hard to put down.
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Summary: The Horrors of War As Told by The Men Who Lived Through It
Review: Beyond Valor is a compelling account of WWII as seen through the eyes of the men who lived through it.The first hand accounts bring the horrible reality of war and what it must of been like for these men, down to a personal level.I felt like I was there.I read O'Donnells' second book, "Into The Rising Sun" first because of an uncle who was in the Pacific campaign, but I found this book so rivetting I bought "Beyond Valor" his first book. Both books are outstanding and a must read.
Rating: 
Summary: DISAPPOINTING
Review: THIS BOOK IS FILLED WITH SINGLE PAGE ACCOUNTS OF RANGER, AIRBORNE AND SPECIAL FORCE FIGHTING IN WORLD WAR II. THEY FALL WAY SHORT OF WHAT IT COULD HAVE BEEN. A B40 ROCKET FRAGMENT SAW TO IT THAT I SPEND THE REST OF MY DAYS IN A WHEELCHAIR AND BECAUSE OF IT I HAVE READ MY SHARE OF WORLD WAR II BOOKS AND BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY BEYOND VALOR IS AN OPEN HOLE. I SUGGEST THOSE THAT BELIEVE BEYOND VALOR A COMPELLING READ SPEND A DAY OR TWO IN A DAV, VFW OR A VETERANS HOSPITAL. THOSE INTERESTED IN WWII RANGERS I SUGGEST *RANGERS IN WWII* BY ROBERT BLACK. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ORAL HISTORIES I SUGGEST *DEATH MARCH* (BATAAN DEATH MARCH IN WWII) BY DONALD KNOX OR *THE KOREAN WAR* ALSO BY DONALD KNOX. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN NAM I SUGGEST THE COMPELLING STORY OF THE 26TH MARINES SEP 67 MAULING IN *AMBUSH VALLEY* BY ERIC HAMMEL.
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Summary: Evocative and Moving Oral History !
Review: In reading the reviews, one sees that their are mixed reactions to O'Donnell's oral history. My approach to this work is that it truely contributes to an ongoing literature about the subject. It is also very timely, as many of the Vets are now passing away. Simply on this basis, I would say to Mr. O'Donnell, please write a second and third part volumes made from these voices. As a professional sociologist with an eye and ear for oral history, I can only say that I really learned alot from this volume. Unlike other great works (thinking of Ambrose, whom I like also), Beyond Valor does not bend these voices into a kind of patriotic hooting--these men rarely talk about their experiences in this way; They do say many times that war should not be repeated, ever! The one soldier who so unabashly made the point when he describes being half frozen in a fox hole, using the bathroom in his pants, waiting out the shelling all night, knowing that when the shelling stops, the German soldiers would be coming quick, and many other scenes told by those on the front lines; all this comes to the reader without any follow-up by the author that would render the stories as "guts and glory." None of that, and that is what I really appreciated about this book. I am a student of the social interaction among the men at the front during WWII, and this is one of the best reads I've had so far along my journey of understanding. I'm going to get the other one on the Vets of the Pacific. A must read!
Rating: 
Summary: Pleasureable, not one of the best.
Review: The accounts written in Beyond Valor are stunning at times and mediocre at others. It does not appear Mr. O'Donnell was able to garnish the actions, words and behaviors he was after, yet left the stories in regardless. I finised the book in short time, but felt most of the subjects were only interviewed on the surface. I anticiapted detail and depth that was not present in this book. It is interesting reading but requires other rescources to fill in the blanks.
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Summary: Dud
Review: I was looking forward to this "compelling story." What I found was a rambling, shoddy, loose collection of thrown together anecdotes and interview notes. The narrative ultimately comes across flat and uninspired. It certainly failed to live up to reviewed expectations.
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Summary: ONE OF THE MOST GRAPHIC AND COMPELLING WWII BOOKS WRITTEN
Review: Beyond Valor is one of the most graphic and compelling accounts of WWII ever produced. And I've read nearly every oral/narrative I could get my hands on. These are stories that are not told in "polite company" Many veterans could share with their families and have remained buried for 55 years until they were unearthed by the author. A massacre that took place in the on Christmas Eve during the Bulge. "We had twenty-two SS prisoners. One of the German prisoners was very well educated - an officer that went to school in the United States. It was right there a matter of elimination. There were about eight or ten American soldiers. It was just doing a job and it was over." Few if any books published on WWII touch upon such taboo subjects. Dick Durkee's attack on Rochelinval "I yelled bring up the men and the answer I got from my runner I'll never forget: "Sir they're all dead."
The bodies of the men were all over the place, in all kinds of positions. Some were laying face up with sightless eyes, others face down..." The Ranger charge on Hill 400 "...bayonets shinning, hip firing, and yelling a battle cry that probably goes back through the eons of time we charged into the jaws of death. I know that I will never see a more brave and glorious sight. It was for me indeed a moment of being proud to be a Ranger." The book uncovers the untold story of the death of Darby's Rangers at Cisterna were the Rangers were used as human shields. "The Germans kept shouting., "Surrender or we will shoot the prisoner!" [The Rangers were placed in front of German tanks to coax other Rangers into surrendering.] The Germans immediately sprayed the column, killing several Rangers in cold blood. There's incredible escape stories such as Roland Rondeau's escape from a suicide mission on El Djem bridge in North Africa. Ray Gonzalez's haunting experience is another example of one of the unforgettable stories in the book. "I still feel so bad because I remember a young soldier, he couldn't have been more than 17 or 18, and he begged me not to shot him but I shot him anyways." The 506th's advance into Son in Holland: "They were literally blown to pieces. One of my buddies... his head was split in half. The other half of his head was sticking up in a tree limb. ...part of his face still had his eye in it and was staring down at me. I stood up and brought it down and put it inside his shirt and buttoned it up tight so the graves people could find it." ALL of the stories in BEYOND VALOR are heart wrenching and compelling. I felt like I was there with these men as they relived the war. I couldn't put the book down!!
Rating: 
Summary: boring and hollow
Review: i was very disappointed with beyond valor. it is made up of stories from many of the finest trained combat soldiers the americans has ever fielded in modern warfare. but after i read this book i thought it was boring. what a disappointment. i recommend the simmering and newly released black devil brigade for engrossing reading. you will not be bored, that is for sure.
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Summary: WHERE"S THE BEEF? II
Review: I BOUGHT THIS BOOK THROUGH THE MILITARY BOOK CLUB BECAUSE OF ALL THE POSITIVE AMAZON REVIEWS. BOY WAS I IN FOR A SURPRISE. THIS BOOK CONSIST OF LITTLE STORIES WRITTEN OR NARRATED BY AIRBORNE, RANGER AND SPECIAL FORCE PERSONNEL. IT'S JUST THAT, LITTLE STORIES BUT WITH NO DEPTH. I AGREE WITH OTHER REVIEWS THAT ASK, "WHERE IS THE BEEF?" THE STORIES MAY HAVE BEEN INTENSE AT THE TIME BUT THEY DO NOT COME ACROSS LIKE THAT. THE MATERIAL READS LIKE A LONG, AND VERY BORING LETTER. NO BACK GROUND (NONE!) IS GIVEN TO EACH BATTLE AND THE READER IS LOST UNLESS HE/SHE ALREADY IS AWARE OF THE BATTLE WHICH IS EXPLAINED. THESE STORIES ARE NOT FILLED WITH HORROR OR TRAGIDY LIKE JOSEPH SPRINGER'S ORAL HISTORY THE BLACK DEVIL BRIGADE... I HAVE LEARNED O'DONNEL IS DOING ANOTHER BOOK LIKE THIS ABOUT THE PACIFIC WAR. I HOPE HE ASK HARDER QUESTIONS. MAYBE TH MARINES WILL TELL IT LIKE IT IS.
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