Beyond Valor: World War II's Ranger and Airborne Veterans Reveal the Heart of Combat

Beyond Valor is by far the best oral history of WWII, and I've read all of them. The author does a masterful job of weaving their stories together with his own narrative. As someone who occupation revolves around oral history, I was most impressed by the way he provided minimal editing to their voices which are candid and give the reader a sense that your in the foxhole with these men. Smell, taste, and feelings toward their war that many of these men have buried for nearly sixty years come alive in this amazing book. I highly recommend it!

Beyond Valor is a testament to the slowly-disappearing heroes that were part of that generation that helped make this country what it is today. The book compiles easy-to-read, first-person narratives as personally experienced by these heroes, describing in their own words the brotherhood they felt for one another ("You just can't let the guy that you are with down, that's all" -- Herman Stein, 2nd Ranger Batallion), the anguish on Omaha Beach ("They were floating all over the place, there was blood in the water -- it was just dark" -- Ray Alm, 2d Ranger Batallion), the frustation of seeing your men wiped out ("One of the [German] 88s saw them and blew them apart . . . they were literally blown all to pieces" -- Don Burgett, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division), the pride in accomplishing the mission ("They never hesitated for a minute. When they didn't have an officer, a noncom took over. Nobody ever stopped. They took the railroad and Nijmegen bridges." -- Chaplain Delbert Kuehl, 504th PIR, 82nd Airborne Division), and the joy of being back home ("Oh, God, I can put my head down, the sheets in the bed, there's no bugs on them, there's no rain falling on you, your feet are warm, your hands are warm, you're gonna get a hot meal, there's nobody shooting at you . . . ." -- John Burke, 5th Ranger Battalion). I highly recommend this book to anyone.

Mr O'Donnell brings the feelings of sorrow, anguish, and loneliness of the WWII soldier to the printed page as one one else has ever done.You feel like you are on the front lines with the men. Their stories are so moving I was in tears as I read them. Beyond Valor is outstanding and should be read by all.

Pat O'Donnell's unique way of capturing the heartfelt and poignant views of the Rangers and Airborne of WWII makes for an unbelievable book. These vets put their battle-line experiences in their own words and after keeping them perhaps bottled up inside for 50+ years they come out in such a passionate and unforgettable way. Mr. O'Donnell strings their stories together in a manner that only punctuates events which if not told by the soldiers who actually experienced them, the reader would not believe actually occurred. The stories of how the young men faced death and overcame it will forever change my outlook on the war. This book provides an amazing historical context to the war and reveals events that likely would not have been told if left up to interpretation by those not actually at the Battle of the Bulge, Salerno, Southern France or at the liberation of the camps. What is so unique about this book is that it is not a second hand account as told to an author but the actual words of the soldiers. Mr. O'Donnell's use of "e-histories" is to be commended. This book is as important to documenting the history of World War II as any I've read. The terror and triumph these men experienced played on my emotions as I read chapter after chapter of this book. Mr. O'Donnell serves as the curator of amazing works of history in his web site TheDropZone.org and I am forever grateful that he decided to share some of his masterpieces with the world.

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.