eschews the conventional discourse of the war’s origins, its great battles, and the maneuvering of generals, admirals, and politicians. Instead, it directs its attention to ordinary individuals—clerks, radio operators, cooks, sailors, machinist mates, riflemen, and pilots and their air crews. These are men, perhaps a reader’s brother, father, or neighbor, who chose to serve their country and soon found themselves in a terrifying and otherworldly place. There, described in relatable terms, the men hunch their shoulders against the cold, wipe grit from their foreheads, or pen a letter home minutes before drawing their last breath. reveals the vastness of the war as it reaches past the beaches in France and jungles in the South Pacific, to the villages, placid bays, and forested mountainsides across the globe where the war also raged.