Uncommon Valor, Common Virtue: Iwo Jima and the Photograph That Captured America [With DVD]

February 1945 - both the Japanese and Americans knew the next step to the Pacific war meant a battle for Iwo Jima. The bloodiest of all Marine battles, this struggle is famous for how hard the fight was as well as one of the most famous and enduring photograph of WW2 - the Marine Flag raising on Mt. Suribachi. This is not a detailed book about the battle, the tactics or weapons. The focus is on the photograph, the war journalists who took thousands of pictures under fire, many of whom lost their lives. These Photojournalists were "embedded" long before the word ever was invented. Most of the book are absolutely fantastic B & W photos of the battle. You see the fatigue, the fear of these young Marines, the cost of war. Author Hal Buell gives insight of the battle from the journalist view, in particular, Joe Rosenthal who happened to be the photographer who took this infamous image. Buell successfully debunks the myth of a staged photo. It was not posed or premeditated - indeed, Rosenthal always admitted he took the picture and got it just right almost by chance. I also really enjoyed the clippings from the newspapers of the battle. They were honest, not sugar coated and accurately told the American people this was a fierce struggle with high casualties. A fast read, Uncommon Valor, Common Virtue is an excellent and fitting tribute to all of those who won the War for us and preserve our freedom with their sacrifices. This book sheds light on life in 1945. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to see the battles in the Pacific through the lens of a camera, new history students and long time history buffs alike will enjoy this book.

I'm a big fan of all things about WWII and this book didn't disappoint! The sacrifices that that generation made still guides us today!

"Uncommon Valor, Common Virtue" is a must read for anyone interested in the battle for Iwo Jima. Hal Buell does a magnificent job of placing the reader in the boots of the courageous American marines that stormed the desolate island of Iwo Jima over 60 years ago. Through a rare collection of photos from the AP and National Archives and brilliant quotations from the leathernecks on the front lines, the reader follows the heroic marines from D-Day on February 19th, 1945 through the hellish days that followed on a small volcanic island barely visible on most contemporary maps. Although the overriding theme is the memorable photo taken by Joe Rosenthal of the marines raising the stars and stripes on Mount Suribachi, Buell successfully incorporates the progression of the battle in great detail, disclosing such little know facts as the unfriendly weather that the marines had to endure and the daily measurement of the tough-won terrain captured by the marines on the island. Through quotations and photos by Rosenthal and the many other unsung heroes of Iwo Jima, this book gives an excellent first hand account of the gruesome battle that paved the way for American victory in the Pacific.

"A picture is worth a thousand words," goes the old saying; "Uncommon Valor, Common Virtue" with its 120+ photographs about Iwo Jima and associated verbal explanations provides an invaluable start for one trying to understand the intensity of battle during WWII and the sacrifices made daily by those involved. Iwo Jima was bombed and shelled for 70 days prior to the Marines landing, using an armada of some 450 ships. For 36 days and nights during February-March of '45 100,000 Americans and Japanese fought across the 4.5 mile volcanic island. Nearly 7,000 Americans and 20,000 Japanese lost their lives. D-Day + 4 brought the famous flag-raising and its photograph - since memorialized in statues, stamps, coins, etc. The famous photograph actually involved a second flag-raising - a colonel wanted the first flag replaced by a larger one visible across the island. Unfortunately this led to later (untrue) charges that the second photo was staged. Regardless, fighting continued on for weeks after the photo - only 1,200 Japanese were taken prisoner; most fought to the death, many trapped by flame-throwers inside caves and bunkers, blown up by naval shelling, or killed in hand-to-hand combat. Only three of the six flag-raisers in the photograph survived to see it; they subsequently traveled across the U.S. serving as War Bond ambassadors or attending ceremonies (often seated at the rear) after the war. Sadly post-war life was not good for two of the survivors - Ira Hayes died in an adobe hut on the Gila River Reservation (Sacaton, AZ) in 1954 of alcoholism, and Rene Gagan also died of alcoholism in 1979. Only John Bradley lived a reasonably good life (until 1994), though he mostly declined interviews. Every American should spend time with books like "Uncommon Valor, Common Virtue" to better appreciate the sacrifices of our WWII servicemen.

I have read nearly everything written about this epic U.S. Marine Corps battle. My father was a member of the 4th Marine Division and survived to come home as one of "The Greatest Generation". I also spent a career in the US Navy first as a corpsman with the 1st Marine Division in Viet Nam and then as a member of the Navy Nurse Corps. This book is another "must have" for anyone interested in the history of WW II in the Pacific. We all have seen the flag raising photo that became symbolic of the US in WW II but this book tells us much more about it and also tells much more about this battle. As we get farther away from 1945 and those brave warriors pass from this earth it is of extreme importance that we have documentation to remind us of the sacrifices made on those small islands in the Pacific ocean. If you are interested in the Pacific Theatre I highly recommend this book as an addition to your library.