Patton's Drive: The Making of America's Greatest General
Alan AxelrodOverview
AN UNPRECEDENTED EXPLORATION OF THE FORMATIVE YEARS OF A LEGENDARY AMERICAN WARRIOR
Military Book Club® Main Selection History Book Club® Featured Alternate
In nine months and eight days of campaigning during World War II, the Third United States Army of George S. Patton Jr. moved faster and farther, killed or captured more of the enemy, and liberated more cities, towns, and villages than any other army in World War II, and quite possibly, in the history of warfare. In Patton’s Drive, acclaimed historian Alan Axelrod tells the story of how a young man who, in the words of Dwight D. Eisenhower, was “born to be a soldier,” became a modern American general and one of the greatest field commanders of the twentieth century.
Beginning with a dramatic account of Patton’s magnificent drive across Europe during World War II, Axelrod looks back to the decades before the war and traces the trajectory that revealed the commander’s fighting destiny. In a refreshingly clear, colloquial voice, Axelrod leads us through the determining episodes of Patton’s life and the results they produced. In doing so he weaves a story rich with new insights—a story as absorbing as a great novel, but one in which history truly comes alive.
Synopsis
Military Book Club® Main Selection History Book Club® Featured Alternate
In nine months and eight days of campaigning during World War II, the Third United States Army of George S. Patton Jr. moved faster and farther, killed or captured more of the enemy, and liberated more cities, towns, and villages than any other army in World War II and, quite possibly, in the history of warfare. In Patton’s Drive, acclaimed historian Alan Axelrod tells the story of how a young man who, in the words of Dwight D. Eisenhower, was “born to be a soldier”—who believed himself to be the incarnation and summation of great warriors past—became a modern American general and one of the greatest field commanders of the twentieth century.
Beginning with a dramatic account of Patton’s magnificent drive across Europe during World War II, Alan Axelrod looks back to the decades before the war and traces the trajectory that revealed the commander’s fighting destiny. There was the youthful lieutenant who pursued the guerrillas of Pancho Villa deep into Mexico, and the colonel who, only a year later, led America’s first tank corps against the Germans in World War I. Axelrod also details how the two decades of peace between the world wars were, for Patton, a purgatory of physical and emotional torment, relieved only by what was for him the life-giving violence of desperate global combat.
For all that has been written about George S. Patton Jr., his formative years, though narrated by others, have escaped close analysis. In a refreshingly clear, colloquial voice, Axelrod leads us through the determining episodes of Patton’s life and the results they produced. In doing so he weaves a story rich with new insights—a story as absorbing as a great novel, but one in which history truly comes alive.
Editorials
From the Publisher
Praise for Alan Axelrod's Patton on Leadership:
"The most powerful truth I learned from combat in WWII and Korea is that you simply cannot be a successful leader - and thus will not prevail - without 'integrity, integrity, integrity.' Leaders in Business, as well as the military, will find Patton on Leadership exceptionally helpful."--C. R. "Jack" Kopp, Chairman and CEO (Ret.), Leo Burnett Co. Inc.
"I have no doubt but that the leadership skills and personal attitude practiced by General Patton can be used effectively in both corporate and government managerial positions. Current and future leaders would do well to master those skills and to practice the vital requisites of honesty and integrity for which General Patton was noted and without which, leadership is highly suspect."--William A. Burke, Major General (Ret.) U.S. Army
"Never thought you could compare General Patton with corporate management. But this book does it and does it well."--Karl Malden, Actor, renowned for his portrayal of General Omar Bradley in the movie Patton
Praise for Alan Axelrod's Patton: A Biography:
"Axelrod has cut through the politics and chaff to get to the man."--Robert K. Wilcox, best-selling author of First Blue and Wings of Fury
"Axelrod has written an excellent and compelling biography of an American aristocrat of violence . . .”--Col. Ernest Fisher (USA, ret.), former senior historian, U.S. Army
Praise for Alan Axelrod's Miracle at Belleau Wood:
"Axelrod is one America’s great military historians. He’s done it this time with riveting non-stop action that reads like the best of Hemingway’s frontline reports plus the Marine Corps novels of W.E.B. Griffin. Axelrod pushes you right into the action, onto the battlefield, and never lets up. You become a firsthand witness to one of the world’s great battles, proud and heart-pounding as the elite force, the Devil Dogs, are born in a small forest outside Paris. This is one book I wish I’d written!"--Paul B. Farrell, J.D., Ph.D., syndicated columnist for Dow Jones’ MarketWatch. He is the author of The Lazy Person’s Guide to Investing, a former investment banker with Morgan Stanley, and a former Staff Sergeant in the US Marine Corps.
“Alan Axelrod has perfectly captured the embodiment of U.S. Marines and their unparalleled Esprit de Corps in his new book, 'Miracle at Belleau Wood.' As a former Marine, I find Axelrod's descriptions of the combat in that bloody battle for which the Corps became legendary -- and which is the foundation of its mythic lore -- compelling and gut-wrenching. Axelrod's re-telling of the tales -- some from the letters, diaries and personal accounting of those who fought there -- more than does justice to Marines at Bois de la Brigade de Marine, as Belleau Wood became known to honor the Devil Dogs who fought and died there. More heroes and legends grew from Belleau Wood than from any other battle in the Corps's history. The names ring out in Axelrod's book -- Daly, Blanchfield, Lee. Legends one and all. Axelrod brings it all to life for the reader. Though a historical accounting of the battle, 'Miracle at Belleau Wood' puts the reader in the front row -- 'inches of real estate were purchased with gallons of blood' -- as you witness the heroism and ups and downs endured by the Marines as they defeated the Germans at overwhelming odds. As Axelrod writes, '...created...in 1775, the United States Marine Corps was born in that French forest...in 1918.' A must read!”--Jay Kopelman, author of the best-selling From Baghdad with Love, and a former Lt. Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps
"Axelrod brings us back vividly to the shocking casualties of 'the war to end all wars,' opening up fresh insights into the nature of the fighting and the decisions that shaped a generation."--Bing West is a correspondent for The Atlantic and the award-winning author of two books on the Iraq war. He is a former Marine in Vietnam and assistant secretary of defense.