The Greatest Generation

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Summary: The Greatest Generation is just fine!
Review: Tom Brokaw tells the stories of the men & women, the heroes & heroines who came of age during the Great Depression & the Second World War, & who went on to build modern America. This is an absorbing read about our parents & grandparents. Tom Brokaw writes as he speaks, with fluent, descriptive insights. Cogent details set the scenes of the stories of this generation who, three score years ago, readily gave up their futures to either go to war or do the support work for the war effort. Here are the youngsters borne from the ashes of the War To End All Wars; gaining in years even as their nation & those around the world first soared in the post-war hysteria only to plummet later into the Great Depression. Tom Brokaw & his crew have done a superb job!

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Summary: More Sound Than Substance
Review: I picked up this book intending to like it. "Saving Private Ryen" had predisposed me to a certain nostalga for the WWII generation, as had Dole's 1996 candidacy. Disappointment followed. The title, on reflection, is hyperbolic: was this really the greatest generation in all history, or even American history? Greater than the Civil War or Founding Fathers' generations? The stories are well-written, and interesting. The whole is not as great as the sum of the parts, however. I came away with the impression that this was another 'last good war' book, and thus it covering old ground. -Lloyd A. Conway

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Summary: A Great Tribute To A Great Generation But Mediocre Writing!
Review: Brokaw deserves credit for providing a major tribute to a generation that for too long has been underappreciated. Unfortunately, people in their late 70s and older are just seen -- particularly by Gen Xers and Gen Yers -- as OLD; with most of us having little understanding of the sacrifices and contributions they made towards making America what it is today. I agree with Brokaw that the WWII generation may be the greatest generation in America's history for the various reasons he cites in his book. As a book, however,The Greatest Generation, while interesting, does not fulfill the promise I was anticipating. Basically, what Brokaw has done is provide a series of short, somewhat fluffy chronicles of the lives of WWII veterans from various cross-sections of the United States. While these chronicles, as I said, are interesting, they do not provide enough depth and insight into how these individuals' wartime achievements contributed to what they accomplished after the war. Nonetheless, The Greatest Generation is a book worth reading for the main value it provides -- making each of the post-WWII generations understand and appreciate better a generation which, sadly, will not be with us for too much longer.

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Summary: How about the Generation before?
Review: The book is favorably received by the children of the subject generation. Perhaps more should be told of the elderly mothers and fathers of WWII generation who made physically demanding sacrifices. Despite losing close family members, they took in married daughters and their children, rented rooms to soldiers (and their wives), worked long beyond middle age, and graciously gave up comforts due them to encourage and make the chaotic existence tolerable for the rest of us.

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Summary: Circumstances make for greatness
Review: I love the generation described in this book. These are our parents(I'm a war baby, not a baby boomer) and they created an environment which has opended up a whole array of new opportunities for us and our children. My own father was not in the military but he got up at the crack of dawn each day to take a subway ride from Harlem to the New York Port Authority. From there he caught a bus out to Curtis Wright Corp in New Jersey where he assembled airplane engines. He was one of the first blacks to work there and probably only got the job because of the war effort. However, I take exception to the idea that there is something intrinsically unique about this or any other generation. The people Tom Brokaw described were confronted with a great challenge and rose to it. I don't think the younger generations around today would just cave in if confronted with the same kind of challenge. What that world war II generation illustrates is the greatness of the human spirit. Finally, I don't hink Mr Brokow intended to belittle the contriubtions of other nations to the war effort, hewas merely concentrating on those who were our parents nd grandparents in this country.

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Summary: A blue print for everyone to follow
Review: I am 28 years old and I'm a huge fan of WWII. Listening to my grandpa tell me his stories of being on a ship during the war had always intrigued me. When he passed away a few years ago i felt that i lost that connection...until now. The Greatest Generation is absolutely wonderful. It chronicles the men and women during WWII and their feelings here at home and over seas fighting in that great war. Reading about the courage, integrity, and stamina of these men, i felt as if my grandpa was sitting right there telling me how it was for him. This book shows where family values comes from. How to strive to always do your best and how to become a success in the face of adversity. I could only hope that other men could read this book to see how to be a true to the word, Family Man. How to always love and care for those who are supporting you and how Integrity, Service, and Country are three words that hold this nation together...BRAVO MR. BROKAW!

Rating:
Summary: TV scripts don't always make good books
Review: There are some touching chapters in this book, but overall, some of the material was less-than-gripping. As I read this book, I could imagine the text as part of a TV news story script complete with old pictures, natural sound, some long pauses in the piece as the camera pushes in or pulls out on the shot. Coupled with the video, these chapters would be powerful. Without the video, they read a bit on the dull side. I can't argue with these people being called the greatest generation but I would argue with those that claim this book as the greatest tribute to the greatest generation

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Summary: From a fan of History
Review: This book provides a great deal of insight into the lives and character of those individuals that lived through the ww2 period. Except for the obligatory chapters, required by political correctness, of individuals that didn't do or contribute anything other than just live in that period, I feel that this is a very worthwhile book. As Brokow pointed out, the greatest insights come from comparing today's generation with those individuals from the greatest generation. And that forces all of us to comtemplate what the future will be like with our current generation in charge. We can only hope for the best.

Rating:
Summary: Very touching
Review: I found the words to be very touching, giving the horrors of war an emotional touch. I was very impressed by this book and had a hard time putting the book down.

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Summary: Not a war book, but a Generation testamonial
Review: It seems many people have this book confused as a testimony ofWorld War II, but I challenge you to re-think your stance. The titlecan be no clearer: The Greatest Generation. Yes, there are the stories of the men who fought in WWII, but what of the women back home, the wives, the children, the neighbors, the relatives.

This is a great book in understanding the moral up-bringing and pride and sense of responsibility that was prominent back in the 40's and 50's but has seemed to disapear with the current generation. Our generation will be remembered as the one who blamed everybody but themselves for personal problems and making frivoulos lawsuits.

These were people who came out of a depression just to go into a war, and for those that came back, to turn there lives around. Not just for themselves, but for their families, and for ours today. They didin't know the word defeat, and made sure there families were a priority (can we say that about ourselves today?)

This book took people from all walks of life and painted a very realistic picture of what patriotic pride is all about. They weren't seeking glory or money, but had a deeper meaning of fullfilling a wanting in their hearts to help their fellow American.

Some of the individual account can be a bit tedious at times, but there are many other stories of what true hero's are/were and that doesn't mean you had to be holding a rifle. There were plety of unsung hero's back here at home.

With myself just turning 30, I am convinced that those Americans (of all backgrounds) of the 40's and 50's truly were the Greatest Generation. They were the generation that ensured we would have our own generation.