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The Judas Goat
Life had made them hard...
the army made them mean!
THE ATTACK SQUAD
Hand-nicked from the entire U.S. World War II army, they were a unique company. Twelve men led by a lieutenant, as able as he was arrogant, and a sharp, seasoned sergeant who was militantly silent about his past. Twelve fighters. among them an ugly man, a black man, an old World War I scout, a southern redneck, and a mountain climber. They were a strange assortment, but they had several things in common: They were tough and tenacious—AND THEY DIDN'T CARE TOO MUCH ABOUT LIVING.
To the General they were the army's answer to the marines. To the Colonel they were a crack team...the best he could assemble. To the lieutenant they were "animals." And by the time their brutal training had ended they were KILLERS!
the army made them mean!
THE ATTACK SQUAD
Hand-nicked from the entire U.S. World War II army, they were a unique company. Twelve men led by a lieutenant, as able as he was arrogant, and a sharp, seasoned sergeant who was militantly silent about his past. Twelve fighters. among them an ugly man, a black man, an old World War I scout, a southern redneck, and a mountain climber. They were a strange assortment, but they had several things in common: They were tough and tenacious—AND THEY DIDN'T CARE TOO MUCH ABOUT LIVING.
To the General they were the army's answer to the marines. To the Colonel they were a crack team...the best he could assemble. To the lieutenant they were "animals." And by the time their brutal training had ended they were KILLERS!
- GenresWorld War II
277 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 10, 2022
I'm torn over this novel. The overwhelming majority of it involves the organization of a special squad during World War 2 and their training for a special mission. This is well-written, let's us get to know the characters and sets up the dynamic between the snobbish lieutenant and his combat-experienced first sergeant. All of this is interesting and well-written.
On the other hand, the book takes so DARN LONG to get to the action. The squad begins to sneak ashore on a Japanese-held island on page 259 of the 277 page novel. The novel actually spends a lot more time telling us how the enlisted men smuggled booze into their barracks during training than it does on the battle.
To be fair, even the booze-smuggling stuff serves a purpose in helping define the characters. And the battle, when we finally get there, is intense and exciting. It brings both the mission and the various character arcs to a satisfying conclusion.
So I'm torn on whether to recommend this one. It is well-written, but it perhaps would have benefitted if it had been 50 pages shorter.
On the other hand, the book takes so DARN LONG to get to the action. The squad begins to sneak ashore on a Japanese-held island on page 259 of the 277 page novel. The novel actually spends a lot more time telling us how the enlisted men smuggled booze into their barracks during training than it does on the battle.
To be fair, even the booze-smuggling stuff serves a purpose in helping define the characters. And the battle, when we finally get there, is intense and exciting. It brings both the mission and the various character arcs to a satisfying conclusion.
So I'm torn on whether to recommend this one. It is well-written, but it perhaps would have benefitted if it had been 50 pages shorter.
March 2, 2023
If you go into this expecting a pulpy action-adventure romp in WWII, I don’t know what to tell you. This is not that. It’s billed as a war story but 0 warfare is seen until nearly the end of the book, with way more time spent discussing booze smuggling and beef between the soldiers. I really do not care for this type of book in general, but this is a failure of a war adventure novel.
But then as I neared the end, I got the idea that this novel was intended as a criticism of war and the jingoistic culture around it, where the reader spends hundreds of pages doing little more than learning about these characters, many of whom end up dead in one pointless kerfuffle, at the whims of the evil-rich-boy lieutenant. But honestly it’s still dull as a takedown of war, especially when it’s marketed as exactly the opposite. The social commentary is surface level, and I’m left wondering, what was even the point?
But then as I neared the end, I got the idea that this novel was intended as a criticism of war and the jingoistic culture around it, where the reader spends hundreds of pages doing little more than learning about these characters, many of whom end up dead in one pointless kerfuffle, at the whims of the evil-rich-boy lieutenant. But honestly it’s still dull as a takedown of war, especially when it’s marketed as exactly the opposite. The social commentary is surface level, and I’m left wondering, what was even the point?
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews