The Lions of Iwo Jima

Product Description MP3 CD Format It was the bloodiest battle in Marine Corps history, claiming a third of all marines killed in World War II. The relentless fighting on Iwo Jima lasted for thirty-six days, but most of us only know the iconic photo of five soldiers raising the American flag on Mount Surabachi. For Fred Haynes, a young captain in Combat Team 28, Surabachi was one marker in a ferocious blood-letting against an enemy of 22,000 warriors who were dug into caves and tunnels. The stories told here for the first time will seem too cruel, too heartbreaking, even too fantastic to be believed. As one veteran remarked, "Each day we learned a new way to die." By the time Haynes's unit had broken through the main Japanese resistance, 75 percent of the three assault battalions—the frontline fighters who charged enemy positions—were gone. Many of the exhausted survivors were shattered. In five weeks, Combat Team 28 had advanced 5,600 yards, closed 2,088 caves, and lost 5,885 lives. The Lions of Iwo Jima helps answer the essential questions: who were these men, how were they trained, and what accounts for their extraordinary performance in battle? Review "The Lions of Iwo Jima tells the full story of the unit that raised the flags on Mount Suribachi in powerful, brooding detail. Certainly one of the best books ever written about Iwo Jima--and about the experience of war at ground level."-- "Clint Eastwood""An intense, moving account...The authors capture the horror of their advance as close-range combat in confined areas became the norm. This is a disturbing, sometimes sickening chronicle, but the harsh face of war in the Pacific theater has rarely been portrayed so effectively."-- "Booklist""Capturing the author's stoic and bluntly descriptive recollection of the battle with a gritty military cadence of his own, Michael Pritchard marches side by side with the grunts of CT 28."-- "AudioFile""General Fred Haynes is the highest-ranking surviving officer from (Combat Team 28). In 1945 General Haynes helped America place a flag atop Mt. Suribachi. Now with The Lions of Iwo Jima, he helps America understand how it was done."-- "James Bradley, New York Times bestselling author of Flags of Our Fathers"Capturing the author's stoic and bluntly descriptive recollection of the battle with a gritty military cadence of his own, Michael Pritchard marches side by side with the grunts of CT 28.-- "AudioFile" About the Author Fred Haynes, a retired major general of the Marine Corps, commanded two divisions and several regimental combat teams in three wars. He is the last living officer of Combat Team 28. He lives with his wife in New York City. A retired major general of the Marine Corps, Fred Haynes commanded two divisions and several regimental combat teams in three wars. He is the last living officer of Combat Team 28. He lives with his wife in New York City. James A. Warren is an executive editor at Columbia University Press, where he publishes books on military history, among other subjects.