Rating: 
Summary: wow
Review: This book is one of the best books i have ever read. You get a very up close and personall understanding of all of the characters involved, and you really care what happens to them. I learned so much from this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Next time know the history
Review: Bradley's writing style is at best, childish. The story of Iwo Jima has been told before and better. The "angle" (giving the stories of the flag raisers) was interesting, but hardly earth shaking. Bradley's history, when it strays from the lives of the flag raisers is full of errors. For instance he calls Guadalcanal the "first land campaign in the Pacific". That would certainly come as a surprise to the US Army troops in the Philipines, the US and Australian troops on New Guinea and the British Imperial troops in Malaya who were fighting on land before Guadalcanal. Worse is his Marine bias. The Marines who fought in the Pacific cannot be commended enough. One marvels at their courage. Bradlsy isn't content with that, however. He states that the Marines defeated the Japanese in every battle. Maybe someone should have told him about Wake Island (Marines surrender almost entire garrison), Guam (ditto) or Corregidor (Fourth Marine Regiment captured by Japanese). He states that the Army could not stand up to the Japanese. In reality the Army faced and defeated many times more Japanese than did the Marines. For example the Marines on Iwo faced 22,000 Japanese. The Army on Luzon faced 300,000. Most of the amphibious assaults in the Pacific were conducted by the Army, not the Marines. (And as with the Marines - not one of the Army's amphibious assaults failed) The Army sustained far more casualties in the Pacific than did the Marines, and killed far more Japanese. If Bradley makes the mistake of writing again, he would do well to ask someone other than a Marine gunny sergeant to review his work. If he writes about Okinawa, for instance, he might want to point out that it was primarily an Army battle, fought under Army command. The Marine record of courage in the Pacific stands for itself. How they fought through on Iwo, or waded ashore at Tarawa is beyond me. However, Bradley insists on denigrating the equally courageous soldiers....
Rating: 
Summary: bad general history, too pro marine,
Review: I hate to sound like the odd man out with this book. the personal history of the men involved, and the description of the horror of iwo jima is excellent.However, the author's basic historical research and anti navy bias is is regretable. among the errors: he says the navy"abandoned " the marines at guadalcanal. true, only for a few news post savo. they fought at least six major battles in six months and lost thousands of men. ever heard of "ironbottom sound?" he is flat out wrong when he states that mccarthur abandoned the formosa/china approach. It was the navy and joint chiefs that had favored this approach instead of the phil. the worst mistake is blindly following the marine/holland smith party line that the marine losses on iwo were the fault of one less day of naval gunfire. this is a gross error and is fully explored in morison, s.e. "victory in the pacific, V 14." finally, as awful as iwo was, and meaning no disrespect for the horror they went through....he implies that only marines won the war. At okinowa the naval losses from suicide attacks were close to the marine losses on iwo. all war is madness and hell. what is sad is that none of these mistakes and "all glory to the corp" stuff was necessary, and detracts from the otherwise remarkable book that he wrote.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book to understand War and it aftermath
Review: This is an outstanding book about life and war. I read this book in 2 days. I could not put it down. To be an American carries with it certain responsibilities. In order to understand our future, we must understand our past. I always thought that after our flag was raised on Mt. Suribachi that the battle of Iwo Jima was over. Little did I know that it was only the beginning. This book has magnified my respect for war veterans and their families. It is no wonder that the WWII generation deserves to be called the greatest generation.
Rating:
Summary: I learned more from this book than from my history class!
Review: I'm going to be a high school senior and I read this book during my summer vacation. I was amazed with everything that I learned from this book- about the men and the battle. I've always wanted to know more about the men who fought to give me what I have today and this book was amazing. Bradley reminded me that these men were normal men put in abnormal circumstances that did extraordinary things. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in history, World War II, or human perseverance. I can't express what this book gave to me in this review, but this book should be required reading to all history students because it gives you a different perspective than what you learn in class. It shows these men as brothers, sons, fathers, not just numbers in a text book.
Rating:
Summary: Flags of our Fathers
Review: Having long had an interest in World War II, I have read many books that dealt with the causes,tactics,strategies, or even details of the conflict. But none have ever portrayed the human element as eloquently, or painfully, as this book. Rarely do you find a book that is as hard to put down yet so painful to read. James Bradley puts you in intimate contact with the participants - every man lost is your 'buddy' too. I can't imagine what courage it must have taken to continue. It is an amazing portrayal of the effectiveness of the training/indroctination the Marines instilled in these men. My father-in-law served in the Pacific and exhibited the same reluctance to discuss his experiences as did Mr. Bradley. Every day we lose thousands of stories like Mr. Bradley's as their generation ages. We owe these men a huge debt of gratitude, they paid a price far higher than any of us have ever faced in our lives. BTW-my copy is NOT for sale!
Rating:
Summary: Better than any movie.
Review: I started by glimpsing a few paragraphs and then I could not put the book down until I had read it cover to cover and some parts twice. The realness of the descriptions, the realness of the emotions, the realness of the "characters" involved comes through. The research intensity was obvious. The things I learned about war from the battle to the propaganda end are scary to behold. This is the history no human being wants to ever relive but will simply because the world forgets too easily. I recommend this to anyone who wants to preserve America as the dominant force for peace on this planet.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening and emotional
Review: My father was a Marine and fought in Tarawa, Guadalcanal and Saipan. He and my mother divorced in 1947 when I was one year old. He was killed in an accident at Camp Pendleton in 1955 after re-joining the Marines. I never saw him or talked to him after the divorce. Throughout the years I have always wanted to learn, at least on the surface, what he went through. This book tells the story through the eyes and emotions of the young men who served. Through this book I have a much better understanding of the horror all the Marines must have faced when storming a beach and fighting an enemy who would not quit until dead. It has also satisfied me completely in understanding why we dropped the bomb on Hiroshima. There is no doubt that it had to happen and there is no doubt that Iwo Jima had to be taken first. I am thoroughly convinced that had these two events not occurred, most of us, my age, would never have been born. Thank God for these courageous men and thank God for this book.
Rating:
Summary: A must read.
Review: Having had a brother-in-law lost on Iwo Jima our family was very interested in this book. All have read it and I believe now have a better understanding of just what and for whom their Uncle gave his life. One of the few books about the flag raising that give proper recognition to those who raised the first flag. Bradley is to be commended for giving us this story.
Rating:
Summary: Informative and inspirational!
Review: As the son of a Marine Sargeant who fought in the Battles of Tawara, Saipan and Eniwetok, I was very interested to read "Flags of Our Fathers", a view of the Battle of Iwo Jima (and others Pacific battles) written from the viewpoint of a son's chronicle of his father's exploits as a Marine corpsman. Compared to what I have read in other books and from first-hand information given to me by my father, I believe that this is a well-researched book. The reader is able to gather a real sense of what the War in the Pacific was like from the florid scenes of bloodshed and death. The odd combination of fear, bravery, and fidelity that these men displayed during these tense times gives the reader a warm spot in the "patriotic" part of his/her heart. The book is written primarily about the author's father, John, and the other five "flagraisers" of the American flag on top of Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima. Short overviews of how these men happened to come together at that fateful time add to human interest part of the book. In addition, a few little known facts about the "flagraising" are included which help to make this a throughly enjoyable reading experience. The problem that their notariety creates for the three surviving members of this elite group is well documented throughout the last quarter of the book. Fame did not bring happiness to these three men! Recommended for any WW II history buff or anyone interested in stories about victory of the human spirit. This book is guaranteed to give you a few emotional tugs at your heart and make you feel glad to be an American. Highly recommended!
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