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Those Devils in Baggy Pants
The World War II classic tale of the 82nd Airborne Divisions fight across North Africa and culminated in the Battle of the Bulge. The author was one of three men who survived the suicide stands of his platoon of paratroopers.
191 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1951
11 people are currently reading
279 people want to read
About the author
Ross S. Carter
4 books1 followerRoss S. Carter served with Company C, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division in World War II. He survived heavy combat in Sicily, Italy, France,Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Of the original forty men in Ross's platoon that deployed to Europe in the spring of 1943 only Ross ,and two other soldiers , remained in the ranks when Germany surrendered on May 9, 1945. Among his many awards is the Silver Star. He wrote "Those Devils In Baggy Pants" shortly after the war ended. He died from Cancer in 1947 at the age of twenty-eight.
"Those Devils in Baggy Pants" is considered to be one of the finest World War II autobiographies ever published.
"Those Devils in Baggy Pants" is considered to be one of the finest World War II autobiographies ever published.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
February 13, 2024
the kind of memoir you feel to the roots
All the men he trained with, fought beside, went on leave with are not left as cardboard cutouts or soulless caricatures. You see them in real time, listen to them, perhaps understand them.
They write their letters home to their mothers. They pen love letters to the women they hope to return home to marry. You want to hear, at the end, that this is what worked for them.
But. As much as regular life is rife with its ups and downs so is the life of a soldier. I’ve read memoirs of Americans, Germans, Canadians and Brits. I expect to read memoirs from men and women of other nations yet - Australia, Italy, Japan, India. The list is endless. But since the time of Homer, and before, there have been such writings and one thing is true and consistent - tragedy.
A soldier may have a lucky day or month but it’s always followed by an unlucky day. They may survive one battle only to die in their sleep from an artillery barrage. They may survive one war only to lose another to cancer (as this author did). Achilles may defeat Hector only to find himself defeated by the arrow of Paris that unerringly finds its way to his vulnerable heel.
Life is as fluid and unpredictable as the waves of the sea.
You may face it with faith, or with a que sera sera attitude. But ultimately you will have to face it with courage too.
One of the better and more realistic, at times even philosophical, memoirs of human life lost to human combat.
We just cannot, it seems, keep ourselves from fighting one another 🪖
All the men he trained with, fought beside, went on leave with are not left as cardboard cutouts or soulless caricatures. You see them in real time, listen to them, perhaps understand them.
They write their letters home to their mothers. They pen love letters to the women they hope to return home to marry. You want to hear, at the end, that this is what worked for them.
But. As much as regular life is rife with its ups and downs so is the life of a soldier. I’ve read memoirs of Americans, Germans, Canadians and Brits. I expect to read memoirs from men and women of other nations yet - Australia, Italy, Japan, India. The list is endless. But since the time of Homer, and before, there have been such writings and one thing is true and consistent - tragedy.
A soldier may have a lucky day or month but it’s always followed by an unlucky day. They may survive one battle only to die in their sleep from an artillery barrage. They may survive one war only to lose another to cancer (as this author did). Achilles may defeat Hector only to find himself defeated by the arrow of Paris that unerringly finds its way to his vulnerable heel.
Life is as fluid and unpredictable as the waves of the sea.
You may face it with faith, or with a que sera sera attitude. But ultimately you will have to face it with courage too.
One of the better and more realistic, at times even philosophical, memoirs of human life lost to human combat.
We just cannot, it seems, keep ourselves from fighting one another 🪖
September 9, 2023
How's this for a textbook example of the "vagaries of fate". Ross Carter was a paratrooper with the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division in World War II. He survived combat in Sicily, Italy (Salerno, mountains of central Italy, Anzio), Netherlands (Operation Market Garden i.e. A Bridge Too Far), the Battle of the Bulge and Germany. Only he and one other man (of the men who shipped-out to Europe in 1942), in his company, made it through to VE Day (Victory in Europe) on May 9, 1945. He died in April of 1947 from Cancer. He was twenty-eight at the time of his death.
Ross left his memoirs to his brother shortly before he passed away. His brother had the raw material edited, censored, and published it in 1951. Those Devils in Baggy Pants has gone on to classical status. Considered by many to be one of the best autobiographies to come out of WWII. It has influenced many to go into the Army Airborne, since it's publication, and is a staple in many military history museum gift shops.
Devils is more of a memoir than autobiography. Ross isn't concerned about his life story. This is a tale about the men that he served with in the war and the physical realities of ground combat. He changed the names of the men that he served with, it is believed by many, wrote about himself in the third person (many believe "The Arab" was actually Ross). Yet many a researcher has examined the actions that Charlie Company, 504th PIR went through and can't find any problems with Ross's account. So no issues about him changing history for dramatic purposes. Why change the names? Well I imagine in order to spare the families of those men the pain of having a first hand description of their loved one's deaths. It's a conceit that takes a little adjustment, but after the first couple of chapters I found myself adjusting to it.
The writing is of its time. It has that down-to-Earth /light-hearted cynicism that I associate with that time period (sort of a Preston Sturges style). Ross was an educated man who appreciated that he and his fellow soldiers had gone through something that was both horrific and significant at the same time. The book is a series of vignettes that focus on the humor that can be found in the midst of a firefight (an American Captain arguing with a German machine-gunner in between the German hosing the paratroopers with bullets) or in the miserable living conditions of a "rest camp". There is also pathos when Ross writes of the loss of his fellow soldiers and the random death that is a constant companion on the battlefield. For such a short book the book packs a powerful wallop at times. Though now over seventy years old it should be read by young people who think that the battlefield is a great place to be. Written so soon after WWII there is no chest-thumping or flag waving in Ross's account. Just mud, bad food, lice, rotten clothing and death.
If there is any fault with this book, I would have to say that it's almost too much a product of its time. I find myself wondering if there was some ghost writing put into his memoir, but I don't know. Ross was a young man and it's obvious that he was heavily influenced by other writers (as we all are at the beginning). He simply didn't get any time to find his own voice before his life ended. As a result, there are moments when the slang and attitudes overwhelm the writing and I felt that I was reading something from Esquire or The Saturday Evening Post written by a popular writer of that time. However, don't let this stop you. Devils is a short read and a fascinating look at the war. It is a book written by a man who not only experienced the combat but put it down on paper when the memories were still very fresh. As a result, there is no polish and smoothness that comes from writing an account years or decades later. What it lacks in historical depth it makes up for with the visceral details.
Ross left his memoirs to his brother shortly before he passed away. His brother had the raw material edited, censored, and published it in 1951. Those Devils in Baggy Pants has gone on to classical status. Considered by many to be one of the best autobiographies to come out of WWII. It has influenced many to go into the Army Airborne, since it's publication, and is a staple in many military history museum gift shops.
Devils is more of a memoir than autobiography. Ross isn't concerned about his life story. This is a tale about the men that he served with in the war and the physical realities of ground combat. He changed the names of the men that he served with, it is believed by many, wrote about himself in the third person (many believe "The Arab" was actually Ross). Yet many a researcher has examined the actions that Charlie Company, 504th PIR went through and can't find any problems with Ross's account. So no issues about him changing history for dramatic purposes. Why change the names? Well I imagine in order to spare the families of those men the pain of having a first hand description of their loved one's deaths. It's a conceit that takes a little adjustment, but after the first couple of chapters I found myself adjusting to it.
The writing is of its time. It has that down-to-Earth /light-hearted cynicism that I associate with that time period (sort of a Preston Sturges style). Ross was an educated man who appreciated that he and his fellow soldiers had gone through something that was both horrific and significant at the same time. The book is a series of vignettes that focus on the humor that can be found in the midst of a firefight (an American Captain arguing with a German machine-gunner in between the German hosing the paratroopers with bullets) or in the miserable living conditions of a "rest camp". There is also pathos when Ross writes of the loss of his fellow soldiers and the random death that is a constant companion on the battlefield. For such a short book the book packs a powerful wallop at times. Though now over seventy years old it should be read by young people who think that the battlefield is a great place to be. Written so soon after WWII there is no chest-thumping or flag waving in Ross's account. Just mud, bad food, lice, rotten clothing and death.
If there is any fault with this book, I would have to say that it's almost too much a product of its time. I find myself wondering if there was some ghost writing put into his memoir, but I don't know. Ross was a young man and it's obvious that he was heavily influenced by other writers (as we all are at the beginning). He simply didn't get any time to find his own voice before his life ended. As a result, there are moments when the slang and attitudes overwhelm the writing and I felt that I was reading something from Esquire or The Saturday Evening Post written by a popular writer of that time. However, don't let this stop you. Devils is a short read and a fascinating look at the war. It is a book written by a man who not only experienced the combat but put it down on paper when the memories were still very fresh. As a result, there is no polish and smoothness that comes from writing an account years or decades later. What it lacks in historical depth it makes up for with the visceral details.
March 3, 2020
I read this book many years ago and revisited it recently. My late father was in the same battalion of the 82nd Airborne Division (the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment) chronicled in this book. Dad was in Europe from North Africa until the end of the war. He saw action in Sicily, Italy (Salerno and Anzio), Holland (Operation Market Garden), Battle of the Bulge, the Siegfried Line, and northern Germany. Like many veterans he wouldn't talk about his experiences unless asked; I wish we had asked him more.
My siblings and I have a renewed interest in his war experience as 2019 in the 75th anniversary of the famous river crossing of the Waal River in Nijmegan, Holland. A British general on witnessing the crossing said it was the bravest combat action he had ever seen. We plan to attend the remembrance ceremonies there.
Interestingly, Dad was born in Holland and emigrated with his Dutch father and Irish mother when he was six-years old. He returned to the land of his birth was at age 22 when he parachuted into the country to help liberate it from the Nazi's.
My siblings and I have a renewed interest in his war experience as 2019 in the 75th anniversary of the famous river crossing of the Waal River in Nijmegan, Holland. A British general on witnessing the crossing said it was the bravest combat action he had ever seen. We plan to attend the remembrance ceremonies there.
Interestingly, Dad was born in Holland and emigrated with his Dutch father and Irish mother when he was six-years old. He returned to the land of his birth was at age 22 when he parachuted into the country to help liberate it from the Nazi's.
October 3, 2013
I have had this book for many many years and just never read it. I am sorry I waited so long to read it but I am glad I have. Mr. Carter was in the 82nd airborne. He was in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, was dropped into Holland, he was wounded at the Bulge. He was in the thick of it. I read the last couple pages of the book long before I finished it. The last couple pages were written by Mr. Carter's brother in 1950. Ross Carter died of cancer on April 18, 1947. He survived the war and all it's dangers and horrors only to die of cancer less than 2 years after the war ended. It made me really want to get to know him all the better as I read the book. It made me sad. I kept thinking about him with cancer every time he talked about having a cigarette. Like most service men and women in WWII, they smoked a lot.
I found the relationships and the different men in his platoon very interesting. It read like such a typical American outfit. I liked that a lot. Talking of his friends that were killed or wounded, hearing about them, then reading about their deaths, it was sobering and moving.
The fact that Mr. Ross died so soon after the war means he wrote this book, or compiled his memories, very soon after they happened. To me, that made it all the more credible and interesting.
I found the relationships and the different men in his platoon very interesting. It read like such a typical American outfit. I liked that a lot. Talking of his friends that were killed or wounded, hearing about them, then reading about their deaths, it was sobering and moving.
The fact that Mr. Ross died so soon after the war means he wrote this book, or compiled his memories, very soon after they happened. To me, that made it all the more credible and interesting.
August 2, 2025
Surprisingly one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read
May 18, 2009
I read a much earlier edition of this book.
A comment made by the author that really stuck out was that the paratrooper believed the only way off the battlefield was by getting killed, getting seriously wounded, or being taken prisoner. This same thought was expressed to me by a WWII veteran of the 505th Regiment of the 82nd Airborne. He got "lucky" on D-Day and was shot in the leg, breaking the tibia and fibula. Although it probably saved his life, almsot 40 years later he still complained that he wasn't with his buddies when they got to Germany.
As I recall, Carler survived the war only to die of cancer a couple years later. What incredibly brave, tough men the US Army fielded. And Carler was one of them.
A comment made by the author that really stuck out was that the paratrooper believed the only way off the battlefield was by getting killed, getting seriously wounded, or being taken prisoner. This same thought was expressed to me by a WWII veteran of the 505th Regiment of the 82nd Airborne. He got "lucky" on D-Day and was shot in the leg, breaking the tibia and fibula. Although it probably saved his life, almsot 40 years later he still complained that he wasn't with his buddies when they got to Germany.
As I recall, Carler survived the war only to die of cancer a couple years later. What incredibly brave, tough men the US Army fielded. And Carler was one of them.
August 10, 2025
Carter had more panache with the English language than most memoir writers and the story of his service is well told and poignant.
My only real reservation is with his use of pseudonyms and penchant for amalgamating several people into one character, one is left questioning the verisimilitude of some of the events.
Also, whatever became of Rateye?
My only real reservation is with his use of pseudonyms and penchant for amalgamating several people into one character, one is left questioning the verisimilitude of some of the events.
Also, whatever became of Rateye?
March 20, 2024
I've read this book at least five times. I enjoyed the humor, and the insights into human nature. The speculation about the love life of fleas was funny. Carter was clearly academically inclined and was observant of what went on around him. What a crew they had.
February 28, 2025
Very long and dragged out, but it covered a huge amount of territory. I had had no idea how the paratroopers had worked in that time, and it was truly fascinating, and very heart-breaking. To me it was well worth the time spent with it.
February 8, 2019
paratrooper history birdseye view
February 22, 2022
I've already read this books for several times bit can't help reading it!
March 17, 2023
Definitely one of the better and more colorful memoirs I have read. Intensely personal and brutally honest.
October 21, 2025
One of the most poignant memoirs to come out of WW2.
😔🎭🪖
😔🎭🪖
April 2, 2013
The author writes of his experiences in World War II as a member of the 504th Parachute Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division.
"...we were often an uneay lot, reflecting much on our future, which was bound to be black because the German strength could hardly be considered as scratched in June and July of 1943." (page 19)
A BRIDGE TOO FAR:
"Field Marshal Montgomery's 21st Army Group, already through Belgium, was crashing on into Holland. The master plan called for three airborne divisions to land simultaneously and to grab ... the huge bridges across the Rhine at Arnheim ... The 101st Airborne Division was to jump about thirty miles and the 82nd Airborne fifty-seven in front of the British 2nd Army. The British Airborne 'Red Devil' Division was to jump eight miles further inland from us and grab the big Bridge across the Rhein at Arnheim." (page 136)
"The 82nd was to grab the important bridge at Grave ... The men of the 504th had the specific task of taking the bridge at Grave. If one of our regiments failed in its assignment, the entire division mission would be jeopardized inasmuch as the various objectives complemented other. ... The jump was to take place about one thirty in the afternoon, Sunday, September 17, 1944." (page 136)
"Nearly every one had a good jump. Within fifteen minutes after falling into Holland we were on the way to the bridge. ... We were within five hundred yards of it when a tremendous explosion lifted the bridge high into the air and scattered it over a wide area. ... After destroying the bridge the Germans set up a stout defense in its ruins. ... The remainder of the battalion had seized their bridges intact though not without casualties." (page 141)
"...we were often an uneay lot, reflecting much on our future, which was bound to be black because the German strength could hardly be considered as scratched in June and July of 1943." (page 19)
A BRIDGE TOO FAR:
"Field Marshal Montgomery's 21st Army Group, already through Belgium, was crashing on into Holland. The master plan called for three airborne divisions to land simultaneously and to grab ... the huge bridges across the Rhine at Arnheim ... The 101st Airborne Division was to jump about thirty miles and the 82nd Airborne fifty-seven in front of the British 2nd Army. The British Airborne 'Red Devil' Division was to jump eight miles further inland from us and grab the big Bridge across the Rhein at Arnheim." (page 136)
"The 82nd was to grab the important bridge at Grave ... The men of the 504th had the specific task of taking the bridge at Grave. If one of our regiments failed in its assignment, the entire division mission would be jeopardized inasmuch as the various objectives complemented other. ... The jump was to take place about one thirty in the afternoon, Sunday, September 17, 1944." (page 136)
"Nearly every one had a good jump. Within fifteen minutes after falling into Holland we were on the way to the bridge. ... We were within five hundred yards of it when a tremendous explosion lifted the bridge high into the air and scattered it over a wide area. ... After destroying the bridge the Germans set up a stout defense in its ruins. ... The remainder of the battalion had seized their bridges intact though not without casualties." (page 141)
July 2, 2009
The language throughout the book felt a bit dated, making it hard to read. This wasn't from bad writing, but from the author writing it directly after the war ended, using 1940's slang terms, etc. which I wasn't familiar with.
Overall, the book really pulled me in and made me understand what a close group of friends Carter was with throughout the war, and what it really meant to lose one of those friends.
I would really like to see this book, and its heroes, be given a similar salute as those men of the Band of Brothers book. I think this story would make an incredible movie/series.
Overall, the book really pulled me in and made me understand what a close group of friends Carter was with throughout the war, and what it really meant to lose one of those friends.
I would really like to see this book, and its heroes, be given a similar salute as those men of the Band of Brothers book. I think this story would make an incredible movie/series.
September 14, 2011
"Those Devils in Baggy Pants" is a fascinating first-hand account of Ross Carter's life as a paratrooper during WWII. From training in North Africa to a lengthy deployment in Italy and on to the Battle of the Bulge, this book takes the reader up close and personal with the 82nd Airborne Division. This title is one of those I just could not put down -- it ranks right up there with Eugene Sledge's classic, "With the Old Breed".
February 8, 2013
An absolute classic of WWII memoirs. Carter is an able narrator and his story is tragic, comic, and epic simultaneously. He populates the narrative with his friends who are each great characters in their own right (some even say that Carter himself is the Arab). No other memoir reads or sounds like this one and that is part of the book's charm.
November 24, 2013
Received this book from a friend who highly recommended it. I couldn't agree more. Pick it up and read it on Veterans Day. Your appreciation for our men and women in the armed forces will grow immensely.
January 14, 2009
I read this while I was in high school and believed for a long time afterward that I was going to be an airborne soldier.
February 18, 2009
Pappa Joes World war 2 gig
November 1, 2009
Tended towards mostly humorous anecdotes about his buddies but still has some good combat stuff. Uneven and the writing style seemed kind of dated.
October 14, 2011
reading while we're in the studio. pretty interesting and sometimes gross.
September 18, 2015
A very genuine memoir. Seeing as how it was written in 1945, it definitely captures the feel of the time period.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews