If You Survive (Ivy Books World War II/Nonfiction): From Normandy to the Battle of the Bulge to the End of World War II, One American Officer’s Riveting True Story
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So promised George Wilson’s World War II commanding officer in the hedgerows of Normandy — and it was to be a promise dramatically fulfilled. From July, 1944, to the closing days of the war, from the first penetration of the Siegfried Line to the Nazis’ last desperate charge in the Battle of the Bulge, Wilson fought in the thickest of the action, helping take the small towns of northern France and Belgium building by building.
Of all the men and officers who started out in Company F of the 4th Infantry Division with him, Wilson was the only one who finished. In the end, he felt not like a conqueror or a victor, but an exhausted survivor, left with nothing but his life — and his emotions.
If You Survive
One of the great first-person accounts of the making of a combat veteran, in the last, most violent months of World War II.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Ballantine Books, Reissue edition (1 Feb. 1987) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Mass Market Paperback | 288 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0804100039 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0804100038 |
| Dimensions | 10.41 x 1.78 x 17.27 cm |
by BALLYSEAGAL
I just came across this book while looking through all the WW2 books available through Amazon and the name of the book hooked me right in. from reading the details about the book it sounded like it was the book for me.
I really enjoy WW2 books set in and around the european campain and this one didn’t disappoint me. having read the Stephen E Ambrose Band of Brothers book and hearing all about what happened to them it was good to read a book about one soldiers tale in and around the Battle of the Bulge.
The section of the book set during the Hurtgen forest fighting really opened my eyes and have a real deep respect for all who went through the horrors of WW2.
In a nutshell if you like the Ambrose books you’ll enjoy reading about George Wilson.
by Keith F. Massey
I have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone who is interested in learning of the experiences of the infantryman in the US Army in the last year of the war.
The author gives a very moving account of his experiences and brings home the terrifying job he and his colleagues were asked to do.
The book takes the reader through the battles and skirmishes in vivid detail and brings home the ever present risk of death or wounding.
Friendly fire and carelessness are shown as all too frequent events with devastating results.
There are no false heroics, just a gritty and honest account which does credit to the author and his comrades.
To use an overworked expression Mr Wilson was indeed a true hero and I am glad he survived his war.
The book is very fast paced and I could not put it down.
I think this story would make a great film and being a factual account would certainly be on a par with, if not better than, Saving Private Ryan.
by BarbaraM
George Wilson is outstanding as an intelligent man who notices and comments upon his experiences and observations mostly very objectively….in some cases with admirable restraint. From his story, and largely from what he leaves unsaid, he is also a man of great courage and resource. This book, while not a general history, nevertheless gives a well rounded idea of the theatre of war in Western Europe after D-day. I found it extremely easy to tie his description of the actions he experienced into the larger picture. He gives one useful time and place markers. One continues to be aghast at the shocking nature of war and how it can Spotlight the bravest and best of us. Mr Wilson is one of those heroes we owe so very much to. This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it. It is written in a style and with sufficient descriptive background to make it eminently readable by all, even those with little WW2 history knowledge.
by Hereward the Wakeful
…descriptions of life on the front line during WW2 since I read Richard Mathieson’s fictional Beardless Warriors half a century ago – except this isn’t fiction. This could be the guy in the next foxhole to Mathieson’s imaginary hero. A very unprepossessing little book in the sense of what you hold in your hand, it hides a big punch. A cheap paperback – yes, but a big story concealed between those modest covers. If you are at all interested in what life was like for the grunt on the ground make sure you don’t miss this.
by rodders69
I have read many accounts of war, told by those who were there, but none have communicated the sheer blind stumble experienced by the author which must have been shared by the vast majority of those in the allied armies. It portrays the Darwinian concept of evolution, but at supersonic speed. Those who survived to gain experience in staying alive inevitably became responsible for the lives of others. The stress involved in constant combat is graphically portrayed.
The idea that to conquer fear, one must accept the probability of imminent death, is a frightening realisation. To anyone interested in the day to day life of a combat soldier, this book is a must.
by No Longer a Nomad
I’d read a good number of books covering a wide variety of campaigns and incidents during the 1939-45 period, and in my opinion none are as good as this in terms of first-hand accounts. It makes a refreshing change to read such a personal account from a Company level viewpoint as opposed to more prominent account from the strategic angle.
George Wilson’s writing is uncluttered, simple and ‘plain English’, making it a pleasure to read and it therefore renders the dictionary redundant. Not always the case when reading some of the pretentious offerings from mainsteam authors.
A humble man from a very normal background who survived some of the fiercest and most brutal engagements of the War and ultimately lived to tell his own story, Wilson does so without glorifying the manner or the result, acknowledging the futility, horror, bravery and honour of combatants from both sides. An excellent read and very highly recommended
by Tim H
I read this at the same time that Russia invaded by Ukraine and all the time I found myself thinking of the experience of the author and what must be happening in Ukraine. The author was incredibly lucky to survive the war given his almost continuous exposure in the front line. What a tragedy that his sentiments in the final page of the book have not been realised. This is a very good book.
by Gaarghoile
The American Army’s Home made Crimea….
The waste The appalling casualties the power plays between the various commanders the lack of logistic support the poor training at every level the unneccesary casualties the delayed promotions the sheer unwarranted and continual neglect of the front line soldiers. And they didn’t learn a thing from this and they did it all again in Vietnam.
It’s like a parody of Napoleons retreat from Moscow all conducted in reverse? And the fiasco of subjecting the American Soldier to the hell of The Hurtgen Forest for no strategic purpose was it just because the British Army had gone through The Reichswald – using Churchill Tanks equipped with a very low first gear instead of thousands of barely trained human bodies? What should I say now The Anniversary of The First World War is going to be … celebrated……. in …. London and they now call The Battle of The Somme .. a Victory?