ericlee
01-18-2007, 08:48 AM
Is probably the best book I've ever read. It's a war book but it's historical non fiction. Even though war sucks, this book is very gripping in the fact that it tells the story of each individual "hero" flagraiser at the peak of Mt. Suribachi.
I for one as well as many others only knew of this (http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-IwoJima/img/USMC-M-IwoJima-p74.jpg) picture when the Battle of Iwo Jima comes to mind. I never knew that it was only a replacement flag raising. That the marines on that island of that day paid very little to no attention to that flag while it was being raised. All attention paid was to was to this (http://www.grunt.com/images-bs/1st%20Iwo%20Flag%20Raising.jpg) flag for it was the first one to be raised to symbolize the taking over of Mt. Suribachi and was told to be taken down by a commanding officer who wanted to keep it in a safe for his troops to keep as a souvenir. The most famous photograph, the second flag raising photograph is just a replacement flag for the first one taken just a few seconds after the first flag has been taken down.
Anyway, enough of the flag crap. I'm sure some of you knew it already but as said, still alot of people didn't know about it and it's cool to actually know what really happened.
As I said though, the book talks about the lives before and after the battle of the flagraisers. Only 3 had survived and the author of the book is the son of one of the flagraisers, the only non-marine. His father was a corpsman, in other words, a medic in the Navy that deployed with the marines to the battlefields.
Clint Eastwood directed a movie for it just recently. I think I'll check it out but of course, I'm sure the book is better. I'll recommend this book to anybody, even if they are against the war because this book has a very anti war theme behind it as 2 of the surviving flagraisers didn't really want any publicity for the photograph taken and just wanted to live thier lives as normal citizens afterwards. That having interviews and going to events related to the war or the flagraising only triggered memories that they were better off trying to forget and not relive.
Good lord I just typed alot. It just means I really like this book.
I for one as well as many others only knew of this (http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-IwoJima/img/USMC-M-IwoJima-p74.jpg) picture when the Battle of Iwo Jima comes to mind. I never knew that it was only a replacement flag raising. That the marines on that island of that day paid very little to no attention to that flag while it was being raised. All attention paid was to was to this (http://www.grunt.com/images-bs/1st%20Iwo%20Flag%20Raising.jpg) flag for it was the first one to be raised to symbolize the taking over of Mt. Suribachi and was told to be taken down by a commanding officer who wanted to keep it in a safe for his troops to keep as a souvenir. The most famous photograph, the second flag raising photograph is just a replacement flag for the first one taken just a few seconds after the first flag has been taken down.
Anyway, enough of the flag crap. I'm sure some of you knew it already but as said, still alot of people didn't know about it and it's cool to actually know what really happened.
As I said though, the book talks about the lives before and after the battle of the flagraisers. Only 3 had survived and the author of the book is the son of one of the flagraisers, the only non-marine. His father was a corpsman, in other words, a medic in the Navy that deployed with the marines to the battlefields.
Clint Eastwood directed a movie for it just recently. I think I'll check it out but of course, I'm sure the book is better. I'll recommend this book to anybody, even if they are against the war because this book has a very anti war theme behind it as 2 of the surviving flagraisers didn't really want any publicity for the photograph taken and just wanted to live thier lives as normal citizens afterwards. That having interviews and going to events related to the war or the flagraising only triggered memories that they were better off trying to forget and not relive.
Good lord I just typed alot. It just means I really like this book.