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American Military Experience
Omar Nelson Bradley: America's GI General, 1893-1981
When Omar Nelson Bradley began his military career more than a century ago, the army rode horses into combat and had less than 200,000 men. No one had heard of mustard gas. At the height of his career, Bradley (known as “Brad” and “The GI’s General”) led 1.23 million men as commander of 12 Army Group on the Western Front at the end of World War II.
Omar Nelson Bradley was the youngest and last of nine men to earn five-star rank and the only army officer so honored after World War II. This new biography by Steven L. Ossad gives an account of Bradley’s formative years, his decorated career, and his postwar life. Bradley’s decisions shaped the five Northwest European Campaigns from the D-Day landings to VE Day. As the man who successfully led more Americans in battle than any other in our history, his long-term importance would seem assured. Yet his name is not discussed in the classrooms of either civilian or military academies, either as a fount of tactical or operational lessons learned, or a source of inspiration for leadership exercised at Corps, Army, Group, Army Chief, or Joint Chiefs of Staff levels.
The Bradley image was tailor-made for the quintessential homespun American heroic ideal—he was born in a cabin built by his father’s hands—and was considered by many to be a simple, humble country boy who rose to the pinnacle of power through honesty, hard work, loyalty and virtuous behavior. Even though his classmates in both high school and at West Point made remarks about his looks, and Bradley was always self-conscious about smiling because of an accident involving his teeth, he went on to command 12 Army Group, the largest body of American fighting men ever under a single general. Bradley’s postwar career as administrator of the original GI Bill and first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Korean War ensures his legacy. These latter contributions, as much as Bradley’s demonstrable World War II leadership, shaped U.S. history and culture in decisive, dramatic, and previously unexamined ways. Drawing on primary sources at West Point, Army War College and Imperial War Museum, this book focuses on key decisions, often through the eyes of eyewitness and diarist, British liaison officer Major Thomas Bigland. The challenges our nation faces sound familiar to his problems: fighting ideologically-driven enemies across the globe, coordinating global strategy with allies, and providing care and benefits for our veterans. (less)
Omar Nelson Bradley was the youngest and last of nine men to earn five-star rank and the only army officer so honored after World War II. This new biography by Steven L. Ossad gives an account of Bradley’s formative years, his decorated career, and his postwar life. Bradley’s decisions shaped the five Northwest European Campaigns from the D-Day landings to VE Day. As the man who successfully led more Americans in battle than any other in our history, his long-term importance would seem assured. Yet his name is not discussed in the classrooms of either civilian or military academies, either as a fount of tactical or operational lessons learned, or a source of inspiration for leadership exercised at Corps, Army, Group, Army Chief, or Joint Chiefs of Staff levels.
The Bradley image was tailor-made for the quintessential homespun American heroic ideal—he was born in a cabin built by his father’s hands—and was considered by many to be a simple, humble country boy who rose to the pinnacle of power through honesty, hard work, loyalty and virtuous behavior. Even though his classmates in both high school and at West Point made remarks about his looks, and Bradley was always self-conscious about smiling because of an accident involving his teeth, he went on to command 12 Army Group, the largest body of American fighting men ever under a single general. Bradley’s postwar career as administrator of the original GI Bill and first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Korean War ensures his legacy. These latter contributions, as much as Bradley’s demonstrable World War II leadership, shaped U.S. history and culture in decisive, dramatic, and previously unexamined ways. Drawing on primary sources at West Point, Army War College and Imperial War Museum, this book focuses on key decisions, often through the eyes of eyewitness and diarist, British liaison officer Major Thomas Bigland. The challenges our nation faces sound familiar to his problems: fighting ideologically-driven enemies across the globe, coordinating global strategy with allies, and providing care and benefits for our veterans. (less)
496 pages, Hardcover
First published November 19, 2017
9 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
Steven L. Ossad
4 books2 followersSteven L. Ossad is an independent historian and retired Wall Street technology analyst focused on leadership, command, and adapting military technology for executive management training.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 4, 2020
This is one of the first scholarly biographies of Bradley and it was published in 2017.
The book is well written and meticulously researched. Ossad follows the life of Omar Bradley with the most emphasis placed on his early life, WWII and his reorganization of the Veterans’ Administration. Bradley was in the 1915 West Point Class along with Dwight D. Eisenhower. In WWII Bradley commanded the 12th Army Group and at its peak had over one million men. Bradley was an excellent General but was over looked by the public because of Eisenhower and Patton. Ossad presents an unbiased biography and provides a lot of detail and insight into Bradley’s life. Bradley was one of the few five-star Generals from WWII. Steven L. Ossad is a biographer and historian.
I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is nineteen hours and nineteen minutes. Bill Nevitt does a good job narrating the book. Nevitt is a voice actor. This is my first experience with both Ossad and Nevitt.
The book is well written and meticulously researched. Ossad follows the life of Omar Bradley with the most emphasis placed on his early life, WWII and his reorganization of the Veterans’ Administration. Bradley was in the 1915 West Point Class along with Dwight D. Eisenhower. In WWII Bradley commanded the 12th Army Group and at its peak had over one million men. Bradley was an excellent General but was over looked by the public because of Eisenhower and Patton. Ossad presents an unbiased biography and provides a lot of detail and insight into Bradley’s life. Bradley was one of the few five-star Generals from WWII. Steven L. Ossad is a biographer and historian.
I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is nineteen hours and nineteen minutes. Bill Nevitt does a good job narrating the book. Nevitt is a voice actor. This is my first experience with both Ossad and Nevitt.
October 15, 2019
Omar Bradley was one of the American generals of World War II in Europe. He was, quite literally, born in a cabin his father built with his own hands. His family was rather poor for most of his childhood--there were a few years of relative prosperity when his father was a newspaper editor, ended when he died.
But when he decided to try, with little expectation of success, to seek an appointment to West Point, he became his congressman's backup appointment. And then the other, primary choice didn't pass the relatively new West Point exams,and Bradley did. He entered West Point with the class of 1915. It was an iconic origin for a man who became an important World War II general, though being a quiet, relatively shy man, with a dislike for newspaper attention, he didn't get as much press as his classmates and colleagues--who of course included Dwight Eisenhower and George Patton, among other well-known World War II names.
After the war, he got an assignment he at first found very disappointing--being the new head of the Veterans' Administration, in need of drastic overhaul to cope with both the great number of new veterans, and the greatly expanded veterans' benefits created by the GI Bill. Before his retirement, he became Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and a five-star general.
This is a long, in-depth, and thoughtful biography of an important general. I think Ossad greatly admires his subject, but he's not reluctant to talk about his faults as well as his strengths--or about the strengths as well as the faults of his rivals among the contentious ranks of the Allied generals of the Second World War. Bradley's faults included an unwillingness to admit to mistakes, including completely misjudging the strength of German opposition at the start of what became the Battle of the Bulge.
It's an interesting book from which I learned a lot, about Bradley and about the war, and about the reorganization and growth of the VA after the war.
The narrator, Bill Nevitt, is also excellent, clear, calm, and expressive.
Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the narrator, and am reviewing it voluntarily.
But when he decided to try, with little expectation of success, to seek an appointment to West Point, he became his congressman's backup appointment. And then the other, primary choice didn't pass the relatively new West Point exams,and Bradley did. He entered West Point with the class of 1915. It was an iconic origin for a man who became an important World War II general, though being a quiet, relatively shy man, with a dislike for newspaper attention, he didn't get as much press as his classmates and colleagues--who of course included Dwight Eisenhower and George Patton, among other well-known World War II names.
After the war, he got an assignment he at first found very disappointing--being the new head of the Veterans' Administration, in need of drastic overhaul to cope with both the great number of new veterans, and the greatly expanded veterans' benefits created by the GI Bill. Before his retirement, he became Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and a five-star general.
This is a long, in-depth, and thoughtful biography of an important general. I think Ossad greatly admires his subject, but he's not reluctant to talk about his faults as well as his strengths--or about the strengths as well as the faults of his rivals among the contentious ranks of the Allied generals of the Second World War. Bradley's faults included an unwillingness to admit to mistakes, including completely misjudging the strength of German opposition at the start of what became the Battle of the Bulge.
It's an interesting book from which I learned a lot, about Bradley and about the war, and about the reorganization and growth of the VA after the war.
The narrator, Bill Nevitt, is also excellent, clear, calm, and expressive.
Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the narrator, and am reviewing it voluntarily.
February 1, 2018
This was an interesting biography on Omar Bradley, a General who often is hidden behind the shadows Of Dwight Eisenhower, Mongomery and George Patton . Led a Corp, Army and Army Group in World War II and in post war years ran the VA, was Army Chief of Staff, first Joint Chiefs of Staff and was a Chairman of Nato.
While this was a positive biography on Bradley, Ossad was not against pointing out flaws such as his unwillingness to at time admit mistakes as his misreading of the Battle of the Bulge was, he was unwilling to accept outsiders opinions willingly and due to this could be insular in his thinking. All said, a book worth your time.
While this was a positive biography on Bradley, Ossad was not against pointing out flaws such as his unwillingness to at time admit mistakes as his misreading of the Battle of the Bulge was, he was unwilling to accept outsiders opinions willingly and due to this could be insular in his thinking. All said, a book worth your time.
December 8, 2019
I think that what made this book seem so long is that it is a biography and therefore not invested with the kind of urgency peculiar to fiction, and also I am not military. But I am a history geek, so I am very glad that I won this audiobook and took the time to really listen to it.
I think that Bill Nevitt does Nonfiction especially well!
I think that Bill Nevitt does Nonfiction especially well!
November 22, 2025
The book is more a survey of his service than a real deep exploration of his leadership. It really gets into the nitnoid details of WWII and makes Bradley almost more of a bit player than the main character of the book. And his post-war activities leading the VA and as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs is run through so quickly it feels as though the writer just ran out if energy for the book.
November 24, 2019
Omar Nelson Bradley: America's GI General, 1893-1981 (Audible Audio), my first read/listen from author Steven L. Ossad was not my typical read. A non-fiction work detailing the life & tmes of General Omar Nelson Bradley. Highly detailed & well-written, this book may not be for everyone but I found it enjoyable. Bill Nevitt’s excellent narration made this 19-hour 19-minute book pass quickly. I was given an Audible copy of this book & am voluntarily reviewing it. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews