US Veterans Day 11/11: WWII journalists
One way to remember those who served, and the many who died, is to read the writings of journalists embedded with the troops during WWII. The writing is crisp and modern and content-rich. Not a pundit or talking head in the bunch...
The best of the lot was Ernie Pyle. His columns were put together in four books: Ernie Pyle in England (he was a well-known feature columnist before WWII), This Is Your War, Brave Men, and Last Chapter (he died from a sniper bullet in Asia just before the war ended).
Bill Mauldin was better known as a combat sketch artist and editorial cartoonist. His collection of sketches and text, Up Front, is well worth a read. His book Back Home gives a flavor of what the returning WWII vet faced.
A chapter from any one of these books is more real and vivid than any movie or history. They are written by men who knew all too well that anything they wrote could be their last words. There’s an honesty and directness that reminds you what good journalism can be.