From a 99th Division veteran

books:

	• Once Upon a Time in War: The 99th Division in World War II (Campaigns and Commanders) Robert E. Humphrey University of Oklahoma Press, 2008 - 366 pages average customer review:based on 5 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

WWII Vets -- Must Read !!!

I purchased Robert Humphrey's book for my father who was in the 99th Division. His review: GREAT!!! Very detailed and accurate stories. Great book to share with others that have only heard about the war. "Once Upon a Time in War" is a MUST READ. I'm told you won't be able to put the book down. Looking forward to reading it again!

THE RIFLEMAN SPEAKS

At last we have a book about World War II whose author recreated the true life experience of the front line infantry soldier.No minimizing or glossing over was employed in revealing the horror, fear, and primative living conditions of those occupying the lowest rung of the military caste system.
Dr. Humphrey's clear and precise description of the nightmarish conditions and events that turned an inexperiensed and untried group of recruits into a fighting machine that was able to stymie the best efforts of an overwhelming German force three times their size.
By June 1944 Hitler knew he couldn't beat the Allies but thought that if he could launch a surprise attack in force and split the Allies and cut off their supply, he could negotiate a peace treaty which leave Russia as his only functioning opponent. He then,in great secrecy, assembled a huge force which was to strike in Dec. 1944.It so happened that the 99th Division was in the exact spot where the 99th was placed, but they, in concert with the 2d Division managed to disrupt the time-table that was necessary for a German success.This attack and repulse became known as "The Battle of the Bulge" and as such will go into history by that name.
This book covers the entire history of the 99th Division from its inception in 1942 to its disbandment in 1945 with emphasis on the major battles, The Bulge, crossing the Rhine on the only standing bridge at Remagen, The Ruhr Pocket, and crossing the Danube. It is written in a very vivid and readable style, and once started,is very difficult to put down. Due to Dr. Humphrey's skill as an interviewer, reporter,and writer the reader feels as though he is participant rather than a spectator to the events described.It presents the life and thoughts of the front line soldier,his fears his homesickness,his reaction and often horror at the act of killing.In many cases,he realized that the enemy was simply him in another uniform,a young man doing his duty.Sometimes he felt he had more in common with his enemy counterpart than his own rear echelon support troops.Finally the underlying message of the book is that war is nasty, ugly and a terrible waste of a country's finest youth and treasure.

review by James Larkey former sgt. I Co. 394 Inf 99th Division

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Once Upon A Time In War

Set in World War II, Professor Robert Humphrey's "Once Upon A Time In War" is an important literary work powerfully illustrating there must be a cause worth fighting for that is sufficient to motivate trench soldiers to risk life and limb. Professor Humphrey conducted extensive interviews over a seven year period with more than 300 surviving members of the 99th Army Division. His book does an excellent job of understanding their combat experiences during World War II and captures how their experiences ultimately affected their lives. He takes the reader on an abbreviated trip through basic training and deployment and then concentrates on their combat experiences, primarily in Germany. The book is well illustrated, depicting the placement of individual squads in relation to the German Army divisions. Professor Humphrey's many examples help the reader understand how physical and psychological hardships experienced during combat can greatly impact persons throughout their lives -- a fact as relevant today as it was over 60 years ago. Race, creed, and class quickly become of no consequence when under hostile fire -- preservation of self and unit become overriding objectives as well as keeping a moral compass in tact when dealing with civilians and prisoners. In summary, we live a sheltered existence in our country and don't see the combat conditions in other countries except the small pieces the media chooses to present. Once Upon A Time In War provides an excellent foundation for its readers in understanding the classical impacts of war on individuals and provides a foundation for evaluating if there is "just cause" for our nation engaging in war - most recently in the mid-East where our nation's security and life style have been threatened by Muslim attacks within and outside our country.

Reviewed by - John `Mike' Rice, US Air Force retired, 14th Tac Recon - Vietnam & Thailand; Son of a retired Marine Corps officer serving in WWII and Korea

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Not a fairy tale

Upon returning from the opening of a veterans exhibit in Waterloo I found "Once Upon a Time in War" here waiting for me. Although I had read several chapters in the Checkerboard News Letter there is nothing like having a book in your hands. I immediately started burning through the pages and finished it during a six hour delay in the Cleveland airport. I loved it. Taking a cast of characters from their homes into an absolute living hell and back again makes for an exceptionally clear telling of a complicated and heart wrenching story. A story that really got to the heart of what war is. Not tactics, not glory, but the down and dirty murderous work of killing the other guy before he can kill you. It's no wonder that guys like my dad and most of the interviewees never really talked about what happened to them during the war.

The book clarified a few things for me about my dad, Keith Wilson,Co.M, 394th regiment. He was so proud of his Combat Infantryman's Badge. Now I truly understand why. Conversely, when he really wanted to be insulting, he would tell us that we, my brothers and I, were good for nothing but the infantry. I guess that I get that now too. So proud to have served and survived but never wanting his children to go through anything like Elsenborn Ridge.

My dad reserved his most scathing criticism for those he referred to as "rear echelon trash". While making us kids buckle those ugly rubber overshoes right up to the top he often grumbled about not having any overshoes during, what he always referred to as, "the battle of the Ardennes" while the guys in the rear all seemed to have them. My dad wore those overshoes every winter of his life. He was very happy when they came with a zipper instead of the buckles. Dad also told us about a beautiful set of German officer's binoculars he "acquired" which got too heavy to lug around. He said that he put two rounds through them to make sure that none of those rear echelon trash got them.

Dad never said anything specifically about the commanding officers of the 99th. I think that he probably just lumped them in with the other guys in the rear. Descriptions in this book however, reminded me of my own military experience during the Vietnam war. "Tired lifers" that you never saw in the field, who were more than happy to take credit for a success and blame the enlisted guy for any failure. All the while much more concerned about the length of your hair than the quality of your equipment. I suspect today's grunts have very similar complaints.

A great book for historians and casual readers alike. This story deserves and needs to be remembered

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From a 99th Division veteran

This review is from The Checkerboard, the newspaper of the World War !! 99th Infantry Division Association:

OK, guys. I think we've found it. This is the book I will pass on to my grandchildren. It's Once Upon a Time in War and you will find your story reflected in its pages. Professor Robert Humphrey tracked down 350 of us for the interviews that give life and passion to the book.
He visited our battlefields, where every few years the remains of one of our "missing-in-action" buddies is uncovered. More than five years of research went into this honest and very readable book. It tells, probably as well as can be told, the story of our 99th Infantry Division and the thousands of men who wore its checkerboard shoulder patch in World War II.
I have bought each of my grandchildren a copy of Robert Humphrey's book with the hope and expectation that they will make it part of their family history and pass it on to their children and grandchildren.
It's not a sanitized account. We lived in holes in thre ground, saw friends killed or horribly wounded. There were times we kept going simply because the guys around us kept going and we would have been ashamed to do less. Our grandchildren should know that real war is not parades and medals.
Yes, this is what the Battle of the Bulge was like to the guys on the ground. After all these years, we can still feel the ground shake under us during an artillery barrage. We can hear again the rumble of tanks and, for some of us, relive the forced marches, starvation and misery of Germany's prisoner of war camps.
This is the hasty and scary crossing of the Rhine, the unexpected hazards of the Danube, and the gut fear as the war wound down that you might be one of the last casualties.
Those of us who remain are in our 80s and 90s. We will find our experiences echoed in the pages of this book. So thanks, Bob Humphrey for your labor of love, I hope my grandchildren find it as compelling an account as I have.
I served in C Company, 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Division

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For the soldier on the front lines of World War II, a lifetime of terror and suffering could be crammed into a few horrific hours of combat. This was especially true for members of the 99th Infantry Division who repelled the Germans in the Battle of the Bulge and engaged in some of the most dramatic, hard-fought actions of the war.

Once Upon a Time in War presents a stirring view of combat from the perspective of the common soldier. Author Robert E. Humphrey personally retraced the path of the 99th through Belgium and Germany and conducted extensive interviews with more than three hundred surviving veterans.

When Humphrey discovered that many 99ers had gone to their graves without telling their stories, he set about to honor their service and coax recollections from survivors. The memories recounted here, many of them painful and long repressed, are remarkable for their clarity. These narratives, seamlessly woven to create a collective biography, offer a gritty reenactment of World War II from the enlisted man's point of view.

Although focused on a single division, Once Upon a Time in War captures the experiences of all American GIs who fought in Europe. For readers captivated by Band of Brothers, this book offers an often tragic, sometimes heartwarming, but always compelling read.

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