"On February 20, 1945, the second day of the assault on Iwo Jimaone of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific theater in World War IIPrivate Jack Lucas, who was only seventeen, and three other Marines engaged in a close-proximity firefight with Japanese soldiers. When two enemy grenades landed in their trench, Lucas jumped on one and pulled the other under his body to save the lives of his comrades. Lucas was blown into the air as his body was torn apart by 250 entrance wounds. He was so severely wounded that his team left him for dead. Miraculously, he survived. While on the hospital ship Samaritan, his spirit soared to see the American flag flying atop Mount Suribachithe same flag immortalized in Joe Rosenthals iconic photograph, Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. Lucas endured twenty-one grueling surgeries and carried 200 pieces of shrapnel in his body for the rest of his life. Awarded the Medal of Honor, he became the youngest Marine in U.S. historyand the youngest of all World War II servicemento receive the honor"--Goodreads.com.
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