A Great First Person Account
I thoroughly enjoyed this account from a person who was there to experience first hand the horror and the carnage that was Iwo Jima. Mr. Wheeler wites in a direct, measured and factual way of the battle that lasted many times longer and produced many more casualties than was expected. He describes the "mistakes" made by the high command without rancor or blame that led to the high casualty rate. From his account, I felt the frustration and the emotions that these young men experienced. We can all agree that war is horrible and that, ideally, we would never have to go to war. We should also be able to agree that in some cases war is inevitable and unavoidable due to circumstances beyond our reasonable control. When it is necessary to go to war, we should prosecute the war with all our available resources to end it as soon as possible. The Marines, as well as the Japanese defenders, on Iwo Jima clearly understood this and their struggle will be legend for all of history. Mr. Wheeler's book is testament to this legend.
