You Can't Get Much Closer Than This: Combat with Company H, 317th Infantry Regiment, 80th Division
As real as it gets may be a better title. This is the genuine article -- gripping, heartbreaking and savage. Remarkable writing for a soldier just trying to survive. Captures the bravery and fatalism like no other book I have read on WWII. Also makes it clear in contrast what a different country we have become. Completely lost is the sense of duty to someone other than oneself. It's been stated repeatedly but this generation was without equal. --J. HarrisonI got the book as a present and couldn't put it down. Lt. Adkins' story is gripping and sometimes humorous (such as his description of a furlough in Paris). But the war is always there, along with the courage, sacrifices, and dedication. When he talked about the tragic death of his friend, who had been with him through so many battles, I felt I had lost him too. Forget fiction, you can't get much more real than this. --Richard A. BelzYOU CAN'T GET MUCH CLOSER THAN THIS is and excellent first person account of the trials, tribulations, and horrors experienced by the soldiers who fought in WWII in the European Theater. A. Z. Adkins Jr. was there in person and kept a complete and accurate diary of names, places, and events as they unfolded around him. His son took the memoirs and made a novel from them. SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, the movie, was tame compared to some of the things Lt. Adkins and his men went through. I also am the son of a WWII warrior and was a war baby. I have heard stories all my life but this is a different perspective. It was very interesting, well written and kept my interest until the end. This is a must read. --H Steven Robertson