BattleFire!: Combat Stories from World War II

"Battlefire! Combat Stories From World War II" by Col. Arthur L. Kelly The University of Kentucky Press, 1997. This book is written by a veteran of three wars: World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Colonel Kelly has collected in one place eleven (11) different stories of World War II, ranging, chronologically, from the Japanese sneak attack on the Navy at Pearl Harbor to the Marines' attack on Iwo Jima. The author recounts experiences of individuals in the U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, U.S. Army Air Corps and the Marine Corps. Interestingly, all of the eleven individuals were from Kentucky. This is understandable for a book from "The University Press of Kentucky". I found it difficult to read the story of Corporal Field Reed Jr. who was on the Bataan Death March and was a POW at Camp Cabanatuan, where he was rescued by U. S. Army Rangers. Of personal interest to me was the story of Signalman First Class Lee Ebner, U. S. Navy. He was on the USS West Virginia, BB48, which was sunk at Pearl Harbor. Ebner recounts how he joined thousands of sailors who had lost their home due to the attack. There were seven (7) active battleships at Pearl Harbor on that December day. If each ship had a crew of 1500 men, then there were some 10,500 sailors who lost their belongings, their uniforms, and their place to sleep at night. On the USS Arizona, BB39, more than a thousand sailors also lost their lives. Signalman Ebner relates that he was assigned to a destroyer, the USS Mahan, DDG37, the day after the raid on Pearl Harbor. What a let down! From a big battleship to a tin can! Ebner's story goes all the way to the end of the war, where he was under attack by Kamikazes. Here is a story yet to be fully told. How did the Navy deal with thousands of displaced sailors on the days and weeks after the sneak attack? Where did they go to eat? To sleep? Where did they obtain new uniforms, and how did they get paid? The old Navy always wanted full and complete pay records before they would give you a dime. This slim volume covers the full gamut of World War II experiences, from the raid on Pearl Harbor, to POW stories, to B17 raids and depth charge attacks on American submarines. Nicely done!

The reader will hardly believe the danger, deprivation and hardships endured by by these ordinary Kentucky boys plucked from their farms and schooling and thrust into the most extaordinary circumstances. Kelly is a great story teller, and these stories of bravery and heroism in the face of the terrors of war are powerfully moving. These are stories that capture the experience of war from all the services and all the major campaigns of WWII while focusing on the very human side of those who were caught up in it. After you read this book you will want to give it to your children and grandchildren so future generations will never forget the sacrafices of those who went before.