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Cranking Up a Fine War: A Louisiana Soldier from Boot Camp to General's Aide |  | Author: USAR Ret. Col. Van R. Mayhall
Publisher: ByrenLee Press
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $13.49
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You Save: $11.46 (46%)
New (2) Used (3) Collectible (1) from $13.49
Seller: restutes
Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 1750562
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1st
Pages: 243
ISBN: 1892958015
Dewey Decimal Number: 973
EAN: 9781892958013
ASIN: 1892958015
Publication Date: May 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
In 1936, Van Mayhall joined the National Guard. He was only seventeen years old and he was just beginning to court the girl who would become the love of his life. He had a lot to lose--but Hitler was "cranking up a fine war" in Europe, and Van Mayhall thought he needed to learn something about fighting. He did learn. He trained in the swamps of south Louisiana, the coastal plains of the Carolinas, and the rural farm country of central Texas. He had attained the rank of captain in the U.S. Army by the time he went overseas in 1942. The only route home lay through England, France, and ultimately Germany on the path of victory. Along the way Capt. Mayhall dined at Buckingham Palace and escorted Marlene Dietrich at the front lines; he served as aide to General William Weaver during the crossings of the Moselle and Roer rivers and as a company commander in assaults against the Maginot Line as a member of the 90th Division "Tough 'Ombres." It would be three years before he returned home with a Silver Star and a lifetime's worth of experience with war, to see whether the "girl back home" had waited for him. Cranking Up A Fine War is a highly personal account of a young soldier's journey from boot camp to general's aide. Van Mayhall has a gift for capturing people and events in a genuine and often humorous way. His stories are truly a part of history, a living history woven into the fabric of all that makes our nation special.
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| Customer Reviews:
A superbly written autobiography October 7, 2006
Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Cranking Up A Fine War: A Louisiana Soldier From Boot Camp To General's Aide" is the story of Van Mayhall's military career which began when he joined the National Guard in 1936 at the age of seventeen. When World War II broke out, Mayhall was as an ordinary soldier among hundreds of others with the 90th Infantry Division, and advanced to the position of Captain, becoming the aide-de-camp to General William Weaver taking part in numerous battles including the crossing of the Moselle and Roer Rivers, and fighting as the company commander in assausts aginst the Maginot Line. Mayhall was awarded the Silver Star. Enhanced with black-and-white historical and personal photographs, "Cranking Up A Fine War" is a superbly written autobiography and a welcome, highly recommended addition to the growing library of World War II military biographies, memoirs, and autobiographies.
A Captivating, Enchanting Story May 13, 1999
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
"Cranking Up A Fine War" is a strong, intimate story centered around one man's World War II experience that is both captivating and enchanting. As an author, I find Mayhall's unique storytelling ability refreshing and enchanting. This book follows the author through his days in basic training, his arrival in France on D+66, his experiences during the war -- both good and bad -- and his return home to a waiting family. It is an honest and straight-forward look at the life of both a soldier, and a man, during the early part of this century. I highly recommend it, both for those who lived through the same experience, and for those who have only seen it through the lens of a Hollywood camera.
A moving, sometimes funny, very personal story April 12, 1999
This book is not your typical "war story." While it does describe some major battles, such as the Battle of the Bulge, that the author fought in, it is concerned more with the day to day life of "growing up" as a soldier in WWII. The author joined the army when he was only 17, got married while in the army, had to leave his wife for three and a half years, and then had to come back with very little knowledge of how to succeed in a civilian world. The book is riveting, funny in parts, and full of great stories like how the author met Marlene Dietrich and the Queen of England. If you are interested in World War II, I would highly recommend this book.
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