The time is 1943, the place is Sicily, and the event is the start of the most remarkable career of any American infantryman in the war. Audie Murphy was a desperately poor eighteen-year-old orphan when he joined the Army, nineteen when he first saw a buddy die from an enemy bullet and an enemy die from one of his own. By V-E day, he had killed at least 240 Germans, had single-handedly destroyed a German tank in one battle and held off six tanks in another, and had become the most decorated soldier in American history, winning every medal his country offered, including the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Instantly recognized for its grim authenticity and its unblinking accounts of some of the most terrible fighting in the war, To Hell and Back became a bestseller and, in 1955, the basis for one of the most successful World War II films ever made, with Murphy playing himself.
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"I learned of this guy while looking for summer activities for AJ and came across the Cotton Museum/Audie Murphy Museum. I looked him up and was intruigued. He was the most decorated soldier of WWII. This is his biography and reads like a war movie. I couldn't put it down. I can't believe people can experience those kinds of things and move on."
— Chanda (5 out of 5 stars)
“In all the research I’ve done on World War II combat veterans I cannot recall another story that involves so much up close and personal fighting.”
— Tom Brokaw“A book of raw honesty, clipped descriptions, and simple courage…[Grover Gardner] is quietly descriptive, and the listener can’t help being moved.”
— AudioFile“[Grover Gardner] brings this terse yet vivid and articulate memoir to life…[Gardner’s] clear and well-paced reading is a joy.”
— Library Journal (audio review)" This is an excellent depiction of what a Soldier and a leader experience in combat, and it comes from the best. If you're going to read any autobiographies or first-hand accounts of war, then read this one. "
— Joe, 1/17/2014" Probably the best first-person account of WW II I've read. A close-up view of the war through the eyes of an infantryman who saw intense battle all over Europe, right up to the end of the war. Highly recommended book. "
— Jay, 1/15/2014" True story of his experiences in WWII. I love this book not only because of it's story, but because my Dad fought with the author in WWII and I remember him talking to me about the experiences. "
— Bonnie, 1/8/2014" A story that had a strong influence on my life. "
— James, 1/1/2014" Pretty powerful - don't let the baby-face fool ya - he's tough as nails. "
— Lefluf, 12/30/2013" [Audio:] A sobering account of this WWII veteran's tour of duty in the European Theater. Humbling, agonizing, at times humorous, Murphy does a great job of providing the reader with a sense of the bone-weariness of infantry life along with the gruesome nature of war. "
— Mark, 12/24/2013" Great book about World War II told from the perspective of the most decorated soldier in the war. "
— Alexis, 12/18/2013" I've read this book countless times. I think I was on 10 or 11 times of reading it, but I've lost track. It will make you stop and think. It's written in simple layman terms, but that's what makes it capture you. Aduie Murphy is my hero and has been since I was 14. :) "
— Jessica, 12/9/2013" This book is so good because it describes about his life in the war and he experience it a lot. I rate this book a 4.0 because it was great and the way it was written helped me understand how people talked back in the 30s and 40s. "
— Lifa, 12/9/2013" Any fan of war stories needs to read this book. The most decorated soldier in US history and his story. An amazing story that needs to be told. You will be blown away by his ability to survive in a brutal war. "
— Paul, 9/17/2013" I'm currently reading this one and it's great! Sure there is blood and guts but mostly emphasizes the relationships between the men. Excellent living history book! Can't wait to finish it! "
— Becky, 8/26/2013" THE classic first person account of the sheer bloody brutality & addictive twisted pleasure induced by hand to hand combat on the Western Front in WW2. There is no doubting it from this disturbingly honest account by Murphy, described by Truman as the "Baby Faced Killer." "
— Des, 7/30/2013" I can't put this book down. Read 197 pages today. I can't tell how many times I laughed, identifying with the dark humor and veiled love expressed in this book. "
— Eddie, 7/14/2012" So far- v. good! "
— Toni, 3/24/2012" If you never read another book about a soldier read this one. Murphy is as fearless as he is modest. We use the word hero today in so many situations that don't merit that word -Audie Murphy was a hero. "
— Ed, 8/3/2011" What appeals to me in this book is that it gives an unsentimental look at war. No glamour, no glorification, just plain truth delivered in a no nonsense manner. Well worth the time. Now to get started on my other war memoirs. "
— Alex, 11/24/2010" Horrific account of WWII infantryman "
— Griff, 10/27/2010" gripping tale from personal account; as unreal as war is to those who have never had to experience it, this does a very good job in making it very real and personal. Not for the faint of heart "
— Scott, 11/17/2009" I read this book when i was a kid and loved it, so my review may be a bit over done. It's how I remember it. "
— Dean, 10/22/2008" Very good WW II journal written in 1949. You will appreciate all of those who served in keeping the United States free. If you are not grateful when finished reading you don't appreciate your own freedom. "
— Bill, 10/3/2008" Very interesting to read about such a humble soldier. This is nonfiction. Would recommend, while not as well written or dynamic a All Quiet on the Western Front very real, very intriguing insight on the war. "
— Marco, 10/17/2007" This was a really great quick read. It's like a WWII version of all Quiet on the Western Front. It pulls no punches about what combat was like and the men that make up the characters in the story are hilarious. Horrifying and funny at the same time. "
— Andrew, 3/3/2007Audie Murphy grew up on a sharecropper's farm in Hunt County, Texas, in a family of eleven children who were deserted by their father. He was sixteen when his mother died and his brothers and sisters were sent to an orphanage or to relatives. When World War II broke out, he joined the infantry. By the war's end, Murphy had become the nation's most decorated soldier with twenty-eight medals, including three from France and one from Belgium. After he returned to a hero's welcome in the United States, he was persuaded by actor James Cagney to embark on an acting career, and he made more than forty films. In 1971, at the age of 46, he died in the crash of a private plane near Roanoke, Virginia. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
Grover Gardner (a.k.a. Tom Parker) is an award-winning narrator with over a thousand titles to his credit. Named one of the “Best Voices of the Century” and a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine, he has won three prestigious Audie Awards, was chosen Narrator of the Year for 2005 by Publishers Weekly, and has earned more than thirty Earphones Awards.