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Letters From a Soldier: 1941-1945

by Jim Larson

326 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #02-0508; ISBN 1-55369-695-6; US$28.00, C$38.95, EUR25.40, £17.60

This manuscript contains actual letters written by my father during World War II - included are my comments and memoirs. The letters were written to his family, especially his mother. Actual photographs have been included, many from Europe during the war.

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about the book      about the author      sample excerpts      catalogue info

About the Book Letters From a Soldier is the colorful journey of a farm boy turned soldier during World War II. The letters are original documents that have survived from the early 1940s. Many photographs taken in combat during the war in Europe augment these letters - photographs never-seen-before, taken by the actual soldiers who fought in General Patton's Third Army. The soldier survived all the horrors of combat, only to come home to peaceful western Michigan, and contract cancer. Dying when his son was only six, we discover with the son the father he never knew. We learn of his faith in God, and love of family. It was with that intense spirituality that the soldier was able to endure the hardship of war - and what ultimately won World War II.

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About the Author Jim Larson grew up in western Michigan. He was educated at the University of Michigan, where he received a baccalaureate degree in mechanical engineering. He earned a masters degree in environmental engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He now lives in Nevada.

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Sample Excerpts

excerpt from Prologue

On my sixth Christmas St. Nick dropped off a Lionel train under my tree -- making me the happiest kid in Muskegon Heights. The locomotive was solid steel and so heavy I had to use both hands to set it on the three rail tracks. If you dropped a small aspirin-like pill in the stack real smoke poured out. The engine was directly attached to the coal tender. I always towed the bright white refrigerator car next, followed by a black gondola car with Lionel written on the side. Naturally the fire engine red caboose was last. My dad and I set up a train board in our basement -- meticulously screwing each individual section of track onto a four by eight piece of plywood. I arranged and re-arranged that train set by the hours that year. And then -- exactly one week before my seventh Christmas -- my life changed forever: my dad died. The time he and I spent in that basement with my Lionel is the only real first-hand memory I have of him.

Last Christmas while sitting in front of the fireplace at my sister's house, Jan pulled out a couple ziploc bags full of old letters. She read a few sentences -- and I discovered these were actual letters our father had written to his mother while in the army. Our mother had died in 1993 and Jan had been the guardian of her keepsakes. That was the beginning of what has become this manuscript: a collection of letters written by my father during World War II.

excerpt from letter May 8, 1941

Today we got paid I got the big sum of $12.32. Our full pay was $13.32 but I had to take out canteen checks, so that made it one dollar short. We didn't have anything else taken out this month so next month we have to pay for our laundry etc.

excerpt from letter June 24, 1941

In this war or maneuvers the 5th Division is on one side while on the other side there are 3 Divisions the 2nd armored Division from Ft Benning Ga. & the other two Division are National Guard, and these National Guard's sure are a bunch of dumb clucks. They walk right into traps.

excerpt from letter September 24, 1941

Monday afternoon when we pulled in here I had a awful experience. I had just parked my truck and started to cut some trees for camoflag [sic] for my truck. I had just set one tree against the truck and turned away from the truck when I looked down at the ground and there about 3 ft. in front of me crawled a big rattlesnake. I had a ax in my hand, so I soon finished him. The snake was a good 4 ft. long and had 13 rattlers on it. I didn't save the skin, 'cause I have a couple at home anyway, but I did save the rattlers. 10 That is the first rattlesnake that has been killed in our battalion on this maneuvers.

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These maneuvers surely haven't amounted to much, they told us they would be much harder than the Tennessee maneuvers, but we didn't do anything all that [much,] about all I can see we did was to get a little difficult driving, the gun sections didn't do anything at all. They went into position, and then they slept.

excerpt from letter December 23, 1942

By the way I hope you are getting enough gasoline to get back and forth to work O.K. How do you manage on only four gallons a week? You can't do very much riding around with the gals now. Ha.Ha. Oh yes how are you and your girl friends getting along. Yes Clarry I'll have to ask you to take care of my girl friends too. Ha.Ha.

It sure was nice that Helen & mother could go to Chicago before the gas rationing came into effect. Boy it surely must be hard to drive on the highway at 35 m.p.h. I know I would have an awful time. I guess if you get caught speeding, they take your tire ration away from you. Isn't that right?

excerpt from letter September 18, 1944

I have a roof with sand on top of my fox hole and everything I had got wet. So you see I had a pertty miserable nite last nite. But this morn it has stopped raining, so we built a fire and now the sun is trying to shine so tonite I should get a much better nites sleep. But those are just one of the hardships of war. Another one is that when we dig our holes and make covers for them, with sand on top. Everytime they shoot the big guns the dirt falls down on you. Sometimes there are pertty bit hunks. So it really isn*t very pleasant.

excerpt from letter August 4, 1944

Well mail just came in and I didn't get any mail at all, but I hope it isn't lost, and the next mail call I hope to get some. It makes a fellow feel kind of blue when the rest of the fellows get mail and I don't. But then I have received mail when the rest didn't so I shouldn't kick at all. Say mom talking of cherries I picked a few the other day. I climbed up in the tree and ate all I could reach. But I would much rather had some you canned. Mom you said you had plenty of sugar, so I'll ask for some more candy & cookies. Thanks a thousand times for everything.

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Catalogue Information

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