Casemate
Gavin at War: The World War II Diary of Lieutenant General James M. Gavin
Key Metrics
- Lewis Sorley
- Casemate
- Hardcover
- 9781636240244
- -
- -
- Biography & Autobiography > Military
- English
Secure TransactionBook Description
Lieutenant General James Gavin, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division during WWII, is one of the best-known figures of the war. Beginning as the commander of the 505th Parachute Combat Team that spearheaded the American assault on Sicily in July 1943, Gavin advanced to division command and finally command of US forces in Berlin. Throughout this time he kept a wartime diary that starts in April 1943, as the unit was preparing to go to northern Africa, and continues through to his final entry on 1 September 1945 during the occupation of Berlin.
During the war years, Gavin came into close contact with virtually all the leading airborne commanders and many others who would advance to the top levels of Army leadership. His diary includes observations on fellow military and political leaders such as General Dwight Eisenhower and the British Field Marshal Montgomery, army operations, and the general's personal life. Gavin was an officer who led by example: on four combat jumps--into Sicily, at Salerno, then Normandy and the Netherlands--he was the first man out the door. Two Distinguished Service Crosses, two Silver Stars, and the Purple Heart rewarded his service.
For decades, Gavin kept the existence of the journal a secret; the general's family discovered it among his belongings after his death. Editor Lewis Bob Sorley has worked closely with the Gavin family and the Army Heritage Center to prepare the diary for publication. His edited and annotated version includes a prologue and epilogue to frame the entries within the wider scope of the general's life.
Author Bio
Dr. Lewis Sorley is an award winning author and military historian. His most recent book, Westmoreland: The General Who Lost Vietnam, was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in October 2011.
A former soldier and civilian official of the Central Intelligence Agency, Dr. Sorley has also served on the faculties at West Point and the Army War College. His Army assignments included leadership of tank and armored cavalry units in Germany, Vietnam, and the United States and staff positions in the offices of the Secretary of Defense and the Army Chief of Staff.
Dr. Sorley is an Emeritus Director of the Army Historical Foundation and is Executive Director Emeritus of the Association of Military Colleges and Schools of the United States.
Source: Foreign Policy Research Institute
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