Hero of the Pacific: The Life of Marine Legend John Basilone - Hardcover

by James Brady (Author)

From New York Times bestselling author James Brady-the story of Marine legend John Basilone, one of three main characters in HBO's The Pacific

Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone was a Marine legend who received the Medal of Honor for holding off 3,000 Japanese on Guadalcanal and the Navy Cross posthumously for his bravery on Iwo Jima. This is the story of how a young man from Raritan, New Jersey, became one of America's biggest World War II heroes.

• Profiles one of three main characters in HBO's The Pacific, the successful sequel to the popular mini-series Band of Brothers
• ""A carefully reported, briskly written book . . . that could go a long way toward correcting . . . historical oversight."" -The Los Angeles Times
• Sorts through the differing accounts of Basilone's life and exploits, including what he did on Iwo Jima and how he died
• The final book by James Brady, the Korean War veteran and well-known columnist and author of books that include Why Marines Fight and an autobiography, The Coldest War, a Pulitzer Prize finalist

An incredible story masterfully told, Hero of the Pacific will appeal to anyone with an interest in World War II and military history as well as fans of HBO's The Pacific.

Front Jacket

The Pacific island of Guadalcanal was a terrible place to fight a war. Although heaven for mosquitoes, malaria, and infections of all kinds, it combined hellish equatorial temperatures with heavy rains and dense jungle. Yet it was here that a shoeless, shirtless, mud-streaked Marine gunnery sergeant known to his buddies as "ManilaJohn" first displayed the courage, tenacity, and devotion to duty that would define the remainder of his brief life and the manner of his death two years later on another island, Iwo Jima.

In "Hero of the Pacific," the late columnist, best selling author, and Marine James Brady examines the life and death of a man who, though now all but forgotten, was one of World War II's most celebrated figures. Medal of Honor winner John Basilone willingly and repeatedly put himself in unthinkable danger to repel a prolonged and determined Japanese attack, reluctantly became a national celebrity and a leading salesman in America's "buy bonds" campaign, then begged his superiors to return him to active duty.

Brady provides a taut and thrilling account of Manila John's extraordinary heroism as more than 3,000 crack Japanese troops stormed his machine-gun positions in a relentless overnight battle in October 1942. He reveals Basilone in action, calmly repairing a jammed machine gun, even as the enemy rushed at him; abandoning the relative safety of the foxhole amid a hail of grenades and mortar shells to replenish diminishing ammo and water supplies; fighting at close quarters with the few attackers who survived his team's withering fire; and more.

If Manila John's sheer courage and stubborn refusalto succumb to exhaustion were on full display at Guadalcanal, his tactical shrewdness and coolness under fire came to the fore on Iwo Jima's Red Beach 2. Brady's account of Basilone's last few hours on earth is among the most awe-inspiring tales of real-life heroism you will ever read.

This powerful biography includes revealing stories of Basilone's youth in the Rockwellian any-town of Raritan, New Jersey, in the 1920s and 1930s; his first cross-country railroad trip with fellow soldiers in 1935; and his decisions to leave the Army and, later, join the Marines.

Brady explains the machine gunner's sly grinwhen legendary Marine commander Chesty Puller threatened to charge him with desertion. He cuts through the amateurish and exaggerated tales of earlier biographers to provide a gripping account of Manila John's extraordinary heroism--the actions that led Puller, just a few days after the"desertion" comment, to recommend Basilone for the Medal of Honor.

Complete with the definitive account of Basilone's death on the World War II island of Iwo Jima, and the actions for which he was post humously awarded the Navy Cross, "Hero of the Pacific" revives and honors the memory of one of the most unusual and compelling figures of America's greatest war.

Back Jacket

Can a single night define a man's life?

From the summer of 1943 to early 1945, John Basilone was one of the most famous and admired people in America. As the first enlisted man to be awarded the Medal of Honor in World War II, for extraordinary braveryunder fire at Guadalcanal, he toured the nation with movie stars, shared podiums with mayors and governors, shook the hands of thousands of citizens, and was even rumored to have made a romantic connection with a beautiful young actress.

Why would a man who had proven his courage beyond any doubt, had gone above and beyond the call of duty, and was reaping the rewards of his sacrifice beg his commanding officers to break with tradition and send a Medal of Honor winner back into combat? Legendary columnist James Brady explores this and many other puzzling questions in this thrilling and surprising biography.

"Hero of the Pacific" tells the dramatic, compelling, and all-but-forgotten life story of a small-town boy who became one of World War II's greatest and best-known heroes, only to be forgotten after his death during another famous and hellish battle on Iwo Jima. You may never have heard of John Basilone, but once you read this powerful tale, you'll never forget him.

John Basilone is one of three soldiers at the center of HBO's ten-part series The Pacific, the sequel to Band of Brothers.

Author Biography

The late James Brady commanded a Marine rifle platoon during the Korean War and was awarded a Bronze Star for valor. For more than two decades, he wrote the "In Step With" column for Parade. He also wrote a column for "Forbes.com." He authored eighteen books, among them several on the Marines, including the nonfiction "Why Marines Fight" and the "New York Times" bestselling novel "The Marines of Autumn."