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LeMay: The Life And Wars Of General Curtis LeMay (2009)

by Warren Kozak(Favorite Author)

4.12 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1596985690 (ISBN13: 9781596985698)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Regnery History

review 1: Curtis Lemay was and is one of the most amazing and villified military men of the 20th Century. Both one of the most inspiring military leaders and also, one of the most frightening ones. He was also a product of a time much different from the world we live in now. This is a great book that takes time to examine not only Lemay the General, but Lemay the man. What gave him his outlook on everything and made him the man he was. Like most great men, he had his flaws and the author does not avoid talking about them, but you get a better understanding of what made Lemay "Tick". A very good look at one of the most influential players in American History.
review 2: i've always wanted to read a Bio on LeMay. I pretty much only knew of him through his parodies in movies... more like "Dr. Strangelove" and by the fact that he's responsible for order the deaths of more people than almost anyone in history. But for the fact that he was on the winning side of the war he would have been a war criminal instead of a national hero. My opinion on him represented the 60s interpretation of an indifferent commander easily ordering the deaths of hundreds of thousands of German and Japanese civilians through incendiary carpet bombing campaigns in WWII. In all fairness I thought it was important to get the whole story and I think this Bio (while not unbiased) does a good job of outlining why LeMay was a product of his time and how his approach to war and his command come out of his personal experiences as well as reflected the national sentiment at the time. I was astonished at how underdeveloped the Army Air Corp (later air force) was at the beginning of the war and how in just 3-4 years became the force it is remembered for. Makes me wonder if we could build something to that scale as a nation again, if we ever had to. It was also fun to read about the history of the Army Air Corp since my grandfather played a part in that history as well. At the end of the day I'm not sure my opinion of LeMay is changed but I at least understand the man and the history he helped write. I'm not sure I would recommend this book to anyone who isn't a history buff, but for those who are it's an easy to read and engaging account of the man and the time. less

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