There are a few novels that I will read more than once, for the simple reason that most novels are poorly written or predictable. I have just re-read this novel for the third time, the first time was in 1977, the last in 2007. I have found that each reading is a treat as the story and characters are realistic. This is a story about a man, Sam Damon, the product of small-town America. We follow his journey as he joins the U.S. Army during World War I and makes a career with all of it’s mind numbing stupidities, undying loyalty and honor and knowledge that the real reward is in his sense of his own identity and purpose. Although a novel, it was written during the height of the Viet Nam war and is required reading by Marine officers and occasionally used in leadership courses at West Point.
Life in the military between the world wars was difficult and the descriptions of the bases, the living conditions, the politicking (remember, the wife of the CO was a powerful person on the base), low pay, etc. are brilliantly described so that one can almost taste the sand that was everywhere in many of those lonely bases situated in the middle of nowhere. Seniority was everything and joining the post, if one was an officer, could disrupt the living quarters of the base as an officer with more seniority could “bump” an officer with less seniority and that officer could then “bump” the next one all the way down the line. The housing facilities were little more than wood and plywood shacks, often with no running water. Years of marching in place waiting for someone to retire so one could slowly move up the military ladder meant years of low pay and even cuts in pay as Congress decided to cut budgets.
The great war novels are not filled with unbelievable heroes who have little fear, but rather, ordinary men who are capable of extra-ordinary actions. Most of the characters are easily recognizable to the reader; a quiet man who has found his niche and talent, another who is power hungry and a user, or men who will follow a leader in whom they have faith. This excellent novel has these types and more, but they reflect of a rare breed of man for whom duty, honor and if necessary, self-sacrifice are the bedrocks of their lives. It is to those men that we owe so much of our liberty. This book is well worth a read and a re-read.
