D-Days in the Pacific with the Us Coastguard: The Story of Lucky Thirteen

I happened to meet the author who signed my book in North Carolina while on vacation. By chance I had read a synopsis of his book online at one point in time and luckily I was able to meet up with this man. I saw many people walking in and out of the bookstore while I was there not paying him any heed, but the few minutes I was able to spend talking to him was perhaps one of the highlights of my vacation. We had talked about the premise for his book as well as exchanging tales of my grandfather who was in the Army Air Corp. I had lost my grandfather about a decade previously which was a definite blow as I remember listening to all of his stories as well as those of his buddies when we would go to his reunion meetings with his squadron. Reading this book took me back to those times. Its hard to imagine what the author, his friends, my grandfather, and any soldier must endure in order to survive when it seems like the whole world is crashing down around them. This book is a definite read for anyone looking to see into the back story behind any Hollywood movie of the era. The screen cannot due justice as this book has. This gives a 3-D look into the trials and tribulations that the young men faced during the war. The stories seem implausible until you realize that this isn't a work of fiction, but rather non-fiction. The ingenuity of both sides is exemplarily captured. I also recommend it to anyone wishing to have their children learn more about our countries history and the men who fought to keep it free. My thanks go to Ken Wiley for writing his story and allowing me to share in the past. I only apologize for not completing this book sooner and posting the review.

I bought this book as a gift for my son who is in the U.S. Coast Guard. He typically is not a big reader but has read this entire book. He said the author is great at telling the stories and many of the stories have inspired him.

As a WW II history buff, I am always looking for an angle on the war that I have not seen before. This book delivers that and then some. Not only was Ken Wiley in the action on numerous Pacific landings - his prowess led to his crew being selected for a number of "special missions" that provide insight into the Japanese suicide boats and to "special forces" type actions to stop them. A great read all around.

I particularly enjoyed this book because it is an important story about our nation's history and is told from the inside by a man who was there and lived it, instead of by some scholarly historian or journalist with an axe to grind. The pace is even and fast and the story is told compassionately without the slightest hint of bitterness toward the military, the enemy, the author's superiors, or his mates - even the ones who lost their courage under fire. This is the story of young men coming of age in the most extreme and trying circumstances. In any age of our history this will be an important book, but especially now with so many over-stuffed politicians on both sides of the aisle vying for attention while our young men and women, such as the ones in this story, are doing the brave and dirty work. This book gives us reason to stand proud of who we really are as a nation, and reminds us of the sacrifices that were paid for our standing as the world's freest nation.

Author Ken Wiley tells of his service in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II in Lucky Thirteen: D-Days in the Pacific with the U.S. Coast Guard in World War II, a military memoir in first-person perspective. Wiley was only 17 when he enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1943; in the Pacific Theater, he was given responsibility of commanding "Lucky Thirteen", his own Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel. His task was to shuttle troops and supplies form the transport to the beaches, often while under fire and during inclement weather conditions. He served in campaigns for the Marshall Islands, the Marianas, the Philippines, and Okinawa. Lucky Thirteen recounts beach combat, kamikazes and suicide boats, sniper fire, and dangerous jungle river expeditions as well as sad tales of lost loves, friends made and lost, and humorous accounts of shipboard life. A personable and engaging tale of World War II from an oft-overlooked point of view.