Common Soldier Books

I second Popskis Private Army. My dad owns a lot of older books from when he was growing up/was my age. PPA was one of those books and i was drawn to it on the bookshelf. Very good read.

 

I agree Stevin, I have all four, actually there may be more I don't know!

Donald Burgett- Curahee
The Road To Arnehm
Seven Roads To Hell
Beyond The Rhine

But another one i recommend is George Koskimaki- The Battered Bastards of Bastogne.
another member of the 101st AB

 

"In Deadly Combat.....A German Soldier's Memoir of the Eastern Front". Gottlob Herbert Biderman

 

Nice to look back over this thread.

Another one I'd recommend is 'Sixty-Four Days Of A Normandy Summer ( With A Tank Unit After D-Day ) ' by Keith Jones ( 11th Armoured Divn ) published in 1990.

A very evocative memoir of Normandy - no heroics ( false or otherwise ), just a very good description of heat, dust, confusion, mischance and the everyday job of commanding a tank in Normandy.

 

Well, I did see an Aberjona Press book there, but I'd like to add two more:

Black Edelweiss and Seven Days in January are both written by veterans of 6.SS-Nord. They were each in different regiments, one officer, one enlisted. Interesting perspectives on a common experience.

I hope this doesn't violate the forum rules, but in addition to making maps for Aberjona, I also sell their books at a slight discount (plus postage, of course!). So, if you want any of their books, let me know.

 

Great suggestions.

OP seemed to be looking for overview books.

G.I.: The American Soldier in World War II --- Lee Kennett (overview of the US Army and soldier experiences)

The GI's War --- Edwin P. Hoyt (collection of war stories from various veterans, but author was a veteran so things are generally accurately framed)

Up Front --- Bill Mauldin (classic "cartoons" plus text to explain the infantry humor, world view)

The World within War: America's Combat Experience in World War II --- Gerald Linderman (puts a darker analysis on combat)

The World War II GI: US Army Uniforms 1941-45 in Colour Photographs --- Richard Windrow (uses re-in-actors in color photos, but complete)

 

Two superbly written ones by real writers:

Naked Island by Russell Braddon (Australian in Malaya Campaign and Japanese POW)

Quartered Safe Out of Here - George MacDonald Frazer (also wrote the Flashman Series of books)

 

You can look at Wiki and look up Ernie Pyle, his writings were carried by 300 Newspapers, so I would say that speaks for itself....my dad always assured me his experiences in WWII in the Pacific was clearly described by the accounts we read from Pyle's books. He lost his life while traveling with troops during WWII.

 

Hans Helmutt Kirst's 08-15 (the Story of Corporal ASCH) .This is a great triology about the Wehmacht soldier before, at the beginning and at the end of the war

 

Since you mentioned the Civil War I will assume you are also interested in the era after the war.
A DOSE OF FRONTIER SOLDIERING, the Memoirs of Corporal E. A. Bode; is, as far as I know, the only book which describes the Infantry Soldier during the later US Indian wars.
Mr. Bode is a German immigrant who joined the Regular Army and rose to the rank of Sgt during the 1887-82 time frame.