The things our fathers saw : the untold stories of the World War II generation from Hometown, USA. Volume II, War in the air : from the Depression to combat / Matthew A. Rozell.
Publisher:
Woodchuck Hollow Press,
Copyright Date:
2017
Description:
305 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 24 cm
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references.
Contents:
Resurrection. The ripples -- Air power -- Hard times -- 'Ye shall hear of wars'. A Sunday afternoon -- The tail gunner. 'Take care of yourself' -- The flight engineer. 'There are no heroes' ; 'something always goes wrong' ; Flak ; 'The guy who will kill my son' ; 'I don't brood about it' -- The ball turret gunner. The funny things ; 'Malfunction' ; The crew ; Westover Field -- The navigator. 'Your first mission' ; Flak ; 'The nine old men' ; Meeting the enemy -- The pilot. 'I'm not going back' ; 'You did the right thing' ; 'People were shooting at me' ; The final mission ; Prisoner ; Death march ; 'He saluted me back' ; Coming home ; The last close call -- The extra gunner. 'Dropped into an insane asylum' ; Aborted missions ; An old friend ; Guard duty ; Sergeant Grayboy -- The radar man. 'The black cloud arrived' ; 'As long as I fly' ; 'Who's our navigator?' ; 'The last I would see of my mother' ; Radar man ; The buzz bombs ; Dresden ; 'I cried like a baby' ; Berlin ; 'Thanks, Van' ; The Russian lines ; 'Crazy Amerikanski' ; 'We're going to crash!' ; 'We were all killed' ; Coming home ; 'They're all gone' -- The bombardier. 'Controlled fear' ; 'Maximum effort' ; 'Like ants scurrying back and forth' ; 'Missing in action' -- Resurrection.
Summary:
At the height of World War II, LOOK Magazine profiled a small upstate New York community for a series of articles portraying it as the wholesome, patriotic model of life on the home front. Seventy years later, a history teacher tracks down the veterans with a connection to "Hometown, USA" who fought the war in the air over Europe, men who were tempered in the tough times of the Great Depression and forged in battle. He rescues and resurrects firsthand accounts of combat and brotherhood.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.