With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge is a memoir and recounting of the World War II battles at Peleliu and Okinawa Island. Private First Class E.B. Sledge, aka “Sledgehammer,” initially wanted to write the memoir to recount his hellish days of war for his family members only. He was then urged to publish the memoir and story for the public to read, and it was fortunate that he did because With the Old Breed is as good as it gets when it comes to detailing a war from a first-person perspective. It’s interesting to learn that this recounting of the war is from a Private First Class in the Marines. Private First Class is only one rank above the lowest rank of Private. However, do not let rankings fool you. From my understanding after having read the book, E.B. Sledge was never promoted in rank throughout his two campaign tours. The story he tells here, though, is one for the ages and will likely live on. I’ve also learned of a ten-episode Netflix series, The Pacific, that covers E.B. Sledge and two other Marines in the 1st Marine Division.

The story starts with Eugene Sledge enlisting in boot camp in 1944. Soon after being assigned to Company K, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines of the 1st Marine Division, he gets transported to Peleliu to fight the war with the Japanese as a 60mm mortar man. While undoubtedly many are more familiar with the battle of Okinawa due to the island being the last bastion of defense before the invasion/bombing of Japan, the battle at Peleliu is much less known to the masses. I think part of why With the Old Breed is so successful is due to how real his recounting of the war is. There is hardly any bravado here. No personal glorification or exaggeration of heroic deeds performed. Sledge did not come from a family with a strong military background or history. He was just one person among the thousands that got fed into the meat grinder of war and lived to tell about it after two brutal campaigns.

Sledge here offers us keen and detailed insights into the machinations and horrors of war, especially one’s fighting on the front lines. I’ve always personally wondered, after having watched and read so many movies about war, what would likely be the most horrifying aspects of it. I came to the conclusion that it must be the constant barrage of mortar shelling and loud explosions. Well, the Sledgehammer has agreed. Along with going over some of the worst aspects of war, he recalls some of the other worst parts the soldiers had to endure, such as the never-ending rain, having to trudge in ankle-high mud, wet socks and feet, the constant smell of rotting human corpses and human excrement, and with those, the flies and maggots.

With the Old Breed really rips the glory and romance out of war. Sledge paints for us as accurate and honest a picture of fighting the fanatical Japanese as he could. Some of the inner thoughts he shared with the readers throughout the book help us understand, if only a little, what the men there were facing. I personally liked his saying that after he survived, he was like a “fugitive of the law of averages.” How else can it be explained with so many dead and wounded? Needless to say, With the Old Breed is a memoir to be read and appreciated on World War II. It talks about sacrifice, courage, friendship, and doing one’s best for their country. It will have scenes that will haunt you, one’s that will make you angry and one’s that will fill you with hope.