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The Greatest
Generation
By Tom Brokaw,
Random House, 1998, 390 pages
Reviewed by Nita K Curry
July 3, 2000
I received my degree in History, but like any good,
red-blooded American, I chose European history as my area of focus.
It isn’t that I don’t love my country, or that I don’t find
American history interesting, but I learned so much of it when I was growing
up…right?
I recently read this book partly because of its popularity,
partly because of Tom Brokaw, and partly because it was about World War II.
Brokaw argues that the “World War II Generation” could easily be
judged as the best our country has ever produced.
He supports this argument by sharing little biographies of fifty-six plus
people who survived World War II.
As an added bonus, he gives us a glimpse of a United States
none of us will ever know. At one point he shares, “…in
1940 only about 54 percent of the homes in America had complete
plumbing—running water, private bath, and flush toilet.
Almost a quarter of the homes had no electrical power.
Economists estimate that most American homes in 1940 had only 1,000
square feet of living space.” America
was a rural country and, of course, I knew that since I grew up going to my
grandparents farm¾outdoor
plumbing and all. However, what I
didn’t realize, or maybe more accurately didn’t think about, was that many of the young farm boys who fought in the war
had never even been away from their homes, much less to a foreign country.
Brokaw tells each person’s story in a homey way, yet he
made me realize that each person’s contribution, regardless of its size, was
vital to the outcome of the war. Throughout these stories the character of this generation
shines through to show they were/are people of noble substance.
They, more than any generation since, faced so many rigors of life at
incredibly young ages, yet they came through it all with integrity, heroism and
a quite dignity. They didn’t
expect anything in return for what they had given because it was their duty.
They didn’t cop-out of situations when the going got rough; it was
their responsibility. Plus, they
felt it their duty to give back to our world continually, as they just didn’t
stop with the war, but continued with the Marshall Plan and beyond.
The inspiration behind this book was Brokaw’s coverage of
the 40th anniversary of D-Day in 1984.
As he walked on Omaha beach and various other places, he began talking
with those veterans in attendance. He
was amazed and impressed with their incredible stories, but more importantly
with their modesty.
I couldn’t help but be amazed at some of these stories.
Dr. Van Gorder, a physician before the war, was part of the D-Day
invasion that included 176,000 troops, more than 12,000 airplanes, almost 10,000
ships, boats, landing craft, frigates, sloops and other special combat vessels.
He was part of the ‘glider’ teams who would fly from England to
France, land and set up medical facilities to prepare for the heavy casualties
expected. Sadly, most of the time,
there were usually casualties on the gliders because they were not equipped for
landing on such rocky terrain. Dr. Van Gorder and his crew were one of the lucky
crews—they all survived, set up their medical facilities and began working
non-stop for literally days. At one
point, he was so tired the only thing keeping him awake was a drink of alcohol
from time to time. Eventually, he
fell asleep with his head in the abdomen of a soldier on whom he was performing
surgery. He was then strongly urged
to rest. As he was leaving the
tent, another soldier offered him some hot chocolate. As he turned around to get
the cup, a bomb hit his tent—one of many narrow escapes.
Facing death was just part of life.
Not just for those on the warfront, but it was everyday news for those at
home. Dread met all who had loved ones in the service.
Brokaw relays stories of wives who lost their husbands, with its
inevitable devastation and loneliness.
These people faced the rigors of a depression, then a
horrible war—yet the complaints were never heard—only maxims to make them
better people. I couldn’t help
but run a self-examination on my own complaints and supposed-hardships.
As I read this book, their experiences and characteristics
stayed with me for days, but questions began to emerge at my response to these
wonderful people who would soon be gone. My
father was an airplane gunner on the Pacific campaign and, much to my chagrin, I
know almost nothing about his experiences.
To him it was just a part of his life, then he moved on.
This book is a refreshing read, but one that made me long
to capture their quiet dignity and hope it isn’t too late for our generation.
ninetyandnine.com
Article © 2000, Nita
K. Curry
-------
Nita
K. Curry celebrates Independence Day by watching fireworks in the dark with the
ones she loves.
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