National Flowers: The Battle of Verdun 1916

National Flowers: The Battle of Verdun 1916NATIONAL FLOWERS: The Battle of Verdun 1916 by Kermit R. Mercer
ISBN: 9781312048447
Published by Lulu.com on July 21, 2014
Genres: History, General
Pages: 384

WW1HA member Kermit Mercer has found a unique way to understand the war with his novel about Verdun based on conversations with World War One poilu (French soldiers).

Mercer lived in the Verdun area while serving with the USAF. He got to know many of the veterans when they were in their early 60s and wrote down their stories in the year after he returned home. His notes were not appropriate for a formal history so he turned them into a gripping novel with insights into the hell that was the war’s longest battle.

This is not summer beach reading. The long-forgotten details about life in the Verdun trenches are surprising and enlightening, like the need to always hold utensils over a candle before eating to avoid dysentery, or how seasoned poilu could tell from the location of shell bursts that an inexperienced German artillery team was at work. In many ways, National Flowers is an excellent supplement to the recently translated memoir Poilu by Caporal Louis Barthas. This is a novel for the serious historian.

Reviewed by Steve Suddaby, past president of WW1HA

They Called Us Devil Dogs

They Called Us Devil DogsThey Called Us Devil Dogs by Brian Scarborough
ISBN: 9781411655744
on July 26th 2006
Pages: 208

Len's Summary: From the diaries of the author's grandfather who served in the 6th Marines of the Second Division, AEF. Available from www.lulu.com.

Dear Family: Letters from the Mexican Border Campaign and the Great War in France

Dear Family: Letters from the Mexican Border Campaign and the Great War in FranceDear Family: Letters from the Mexican Border Campaign and the Great War in France by Shawn Pease
ISBN: 9781257258093
Published by Lulu.com on August 18th 2011
Pages: 99

Len's Summary: First of a series on the letters home from the son of a working class National Guardsman of the 26th (Yankee) Division from Newton, Massachusetts who also served in France and in WWII.

Finding the Lost Battalion: Beyond the Rumors, Myths and Legends of America’s Famous WW1 Epic

Finding the Lost Battalion: Beyond the Rumors, Myths and Legends of America’s Famous WW1 EpicFinding the Lost Battalion: Beyond the Rumors, Myths and Legends of America's Famous WW1 Epic by Robert Laplander
ISBN: 1411676564
Published by Lulu.com on October 13th 2007
Pages: 616

Len's Summary: With a foreword by WFA member Taylor Beattie.