Smith, Larry. Beyond glory; Medal of Honor heroes in their own words

Kliatt, Sept, 2004 by Raymond Puffer

SMITH, Larry. Beyond glory; Medal of Honor heroes in their own words. Norton. 404p. illus. c2003. 0-393-32562-8. $15.95. SA

If anyone has a right to be called a hero, it is a winner of the Medal of Honor. Few of those to whom it is awarded so describe themselves, and all are aware that for everyone who wears the star-spangled light blue ribbon, there are scores of unknowns who are more deserving of the accolade. The Medal of Honor has existed since the Civil War. Each of the three military services has its own version of the medallion, but all require that it be given for valor at the risk of life, far beyond the call of duty.

Collections of the stories of Medal of Honor winners are certainly not uncommon, but this is one of the best. Larry Smith has sought out nearly two dozen of these old warriors and conducted extensive interviews with them. These have been carefully edited, so that each person ends by telling the story of his life and his combat days in his own words. Any collection of this nature involves careful selection, of course, and in this case Smith had to choose from some 5,000 possible contenders. His book begins with several stories from WW II and the Korean War, but about half of them date from Vietnam. Strangely, nearly all of his choices are from the Army and the Marines. Nevertheless, all are gripping and leave the reader feeling that he has really met the person honored.

The capsule memoirs in this book tell time after time of people who have found themselves in desperately unusual circumstances and proceeded just to "do what had to be done." None was fearless--true courage lies not in being unafraid, but in being scared silly and still deciding to go on.

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

A--Recommended for advanced students and adults. This code will help librarians and teachers working in high schools where there are honors and advanced placement students. This also will help extend KLIATT's usefulness in public libraries.

Raymond Puffer, Ph.D., Historian, Edwards AFB, Lancaster, CA