What do you think?
Rate this book
Cronkite's War: His World War II Letters Home
Walter Cronkite, an obscure 23-year-old United Press wire service reporter, married Betsy Maxwell on March 30, 1940, following a four-year courtship. She proved to be the love of his life, and their marriage lasted happily until her death in 2005. But before Walter and Betsy Cronkite celebrated their second anniversary, he became a credentialed war correspondent, preparing to leave her behind to go overseas. The couple spent months apart in the summer and fall of 1942, as Cronkite sailed on convoys to England and North Africa across the submarine-infested waters of the North Atlantic. After a brief December leave in New York City spent with his young wife, Cronkite left again on assignment for England. This time, the two would not be reunited until the end of the war in Europe. Cronkite would console himself during their absence by writing her long, detailed letters - sometimes five in a week - describing his experiences as a war correspondent, his observations of life in wartime Europe, and his longing for her. Betsy Cronkite carefully saved the letters, copying many to circulate among family and friends. More than a hundred of Cronkite's letters from 1943-45 (plus a few earlier letters) survive. They reveal surprising and little known facts about this storied public figure in the vanguard of "The Greatest Generation" and a giant in American journalism, and about his World War II experiences. They chronicle both a great love story and a great war story, as told by the reporter who would go on to become anchorman for the CBS Evening News, with a reputation as "the most trusted man in America." Illustrated with heartwarming photos of Walter and Betsy Cronkite during the war from the family collection, the book is edited by Cronkite's grandson, CBS associate producer Walter Cronkite IV, and esteemed historian Maurice Isserman, the Publius Virgilius Rogers Professor of History at Hamilton College.
356 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 7, 2013
66 people are currently reading
234 people want to read
About the author
Walter Cronkite IV
3 books4 followersWalter Cronkite IV, the grandson of legendary newsman Walter Cronkite, is an associate producer at CBS News.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
October 24, 2016
Walter Cronkite must have been 45 years old when he was born. The letters are read by a family member and are interesting for the most part. He was a romantic kinda guy, who knew?
May 1, 2013
Cronkite’s War: His World War II Letters Home does not disappoint in its glimpses into the private life of the broadcasting icon as he shared his experiences with the love of his life in letters home. The book is written by Cronkite’s grandson in collaboration with Maurice Isserman and is a study in respect and admiration, tinged by just a touch of envy –that envy that every historian feels for those who lived in the world we can only experience vicariously.
As you read the letters the young Walter wrote to his beloved Betsy, you see his brave front in perilous places , and his careful recounting of moments he had to know were historic in order that the woman who shared his life could share these times with him.
I love this historical period, and read and study everything I can about it. That aside, I grew up watching Walter Cronkite bring honest journalism into my world, and now I am reading about the world that formed the man himself. It is heady stuff, and I recommend this book heartily.
As you read the letters the young Walter wrote to his beloved Betsy, you see his brave front in perilous places , and his careful recounting of moments he had to know were historic in order that the woman who shared his life could share these times with him.
I love this historical period, and read and study everything I can about it. That aside, I grew up watching Walter Cronkite bring honest journalism into my world, and now I am reading about the world that formed the man himself. It is heady stuff, and I recommend this book heartily.
March 21, 2014
Excellent view of WWII. Mentions others he knew: Clark Gable (decorated pilot & movie star), Ernest Hemingway, Andy Rooney, Noel Coward, Adele Astaire (Fred's sister), Edward R. Murrow, many with notoriety & without, those who came back & who didn't.
If one does not study history, one is doomed to relive it...so I read this WWII account.
God bless our uniformed defenders - living and passed.
If one does not study history, one is doomed to relive it...so I read this WWII account.
God bless our uniformed defenders - living and passed.
Read
September 27, 2013Wonderful set of letters telling of a man's love of wife and his experiences in the European theater of World War II. These love letters tell of life and loss in war.
listened-to-partially
November 15, 2019Added Nov. 15, 2019. (first published May 1st 2013)
Narrated by: Michael Prichard
I LISTENED TO _Cronkite's War - His World War II Letters Home_.
IT WAS LACKLUSTER. --- NOT COMPELLING.
SEE FOLLOWING LINK:
LINK: https://salon.overdrive.com/media/131...
Narrated by: Michael Prichard
I LISTENED TO _Cronkite's War - His World War II Letters Home_.
IT WAS LACKLUSTER. --- NOT COMPELLING.
SEE FOLLOWING LINK:
LINK: https://salon.overdrive.com/media/131...
April 24, 2014
I started this book as a hardcover I happened to see in the library. So I read the first 100 pp in one format. Then I borrowed the audio copy and listened to it today on my phone (actually mostly in the car now that I have a car that will broadcast from my phone). Made the miles fly by today on my drive home from North Carolina. Actually some of it I re-read since I couldn't really remember where I left off.
Basically this book is made up of letters written by Walter Cronkite, UP reporter in England during WWII, to his wife, Betsy. I love all the references to Judy, their cocker spaniel. I am hlad I saw the hardcover of this book in that it showed what a cutey that Judy really was. Betsy looked all right, too. Half of the time Cronkite is trying to get his wife over to England to join him. Then he started trying to get home leave to come home to see her and was told he was too valuable.
He rode in bombers, gliders, etc., going in to dangerous situations. I think they said there was a ratio of 1 out of every 11 corresponfents were casualties (killed/injured) so they tried to limit people going into battle areas. Many did but Cronkite was stuck back at the desk coordinating the reports. Feeling sorry for himself because he was left out of the action.
And, of course, this is just what he told his wife. The book does at times compare what he says here with what he later said in A Reporter's Life which were not necessarily exactly the same thing. The editors here, one of whom is Walter's grandson, go with the letters for thry were written at the time things were happening, not years later with the benefit of hindsight.
I found some of these letters very beautiful.
Basically this book is made up of letters written by Walter Cronkite, UP reporter in England during WWII, to his wife, Betsy. I love all the references to Judy, their cocker spaniel. I am hlad I saw the hardcover of this book in that it showed what a cutey that Judy really was. Betsy looked all right, too. Half of the time Cronkite is trying to get his wife over to England to join him. Then he started trying to get home leave to come home to see her and was told he was too valuable.
He rode in bombers, gliders, etc., going in to dangerous situations. I think they said there was a ratio of 1 out of every 11 corresponfents were casualties (killed/injured) so they tried to limit people going into battle areas. Many did but Cronkite was stuck back at the desk coordinating the reports. Feeling sorry for himself because he was left out of the action.
And, of course, this is just what he told his wife. The book does at times compare what he says here with what he later said in A Reporter's Life which were not necessarily exactly the same thing. The editors here, one of whom is Walter's grandson, go with the letters for thry were written at the time things were happening, not years later with the benefit of hindsight.
I found some of these letters very beautiful.
October 26, 2016
This was the story of a man who was born mature. It was pretty interesting although the letters were repetitive. Walter's grandson was the book's narrator. Walter had a strong romantic side.
January 9, 2023
We actually listened to the audio book on a car trip, really well done. We enjoyed it.
October 3, 2013
During the height of his career, Walter Cronkite was, perhaps, the world’s most respected and trusted journalist. His career was launched during World War II, when he worked for United Press as a foreign correspondent, reporting on the progress of the Allied efforts to defeat Hitler’s Germany in Europe. This collection of letters he wrote home to his wife provide an intimate look into this important early period of his career.
Of course, since these are the letters of a husband separated from the wife he loves, they are first and foremost love letters. The letters portray Cronkite as a man who was very much in love with his wife and incredibly lonely for her presence. They are also a reminder of how much more difficult communications were during this period, when the letter was the only practical way to communicate with distant friends and family. Delivery delays and frequent writing meant that any conversation was somewhat jumbled and confused. These troubles were further compounded by the security requirements for censorship, which almost certainly caused writers to exercise a certain discretion in their letters. Even so, these letters are emotionally intimate, and provide a testament to the strength of Cronkite’s relationship with his wife.
But, as a journalist, Cronkite was also aware of the historical importance of the events he was covering, and perhaps even understood that his letters might someday be part of the historical record of the war. The details he provides about his work and his role in covering the war illuminate the conditions in England, especially London, during this period, as well as on the continent as the war drew to a close. We can sense the excitement and danger of reporting on the war’s progress, and gain an appreciation for the amount of work it takes to provide quality journalism under such conditions.
The editors of this book have included explanatory text for most of the letters, which help place the letters into context, which is incredibly helpful, and improves the value of the collection, as do the various transcripts of newspaper articles that Cronkite produced during this period. For those with an interest in journalism or the Second World War, this book provides valuable insights into both, while still being both readable and entertaining.
Of course, since these are the letters of a husband separated from the wife he loves, they are first and foremost love letters. The letters portray Cronkite as a man who was very much in love with his wife and incredibly lonely for her presence. They are also a reminder of how much more difficult communications were during this period, when the letter was the only practical way to communicate with distant friends and family. Delivery delays and frequent writing meant that any conversation was somewhat jumbled and confused. These troubles were further compounded by the security requirements for censorship, which almost certainly caused writers to exercise a certain discretion in their letters. Even so, these letters are emotionally intimate, and provide a testament to the strength of Cronkite’s relationship with his wife.
But, as a journalist, Cronkite was also aware of the historical importance of the events he was covering, and perhaps even understood that his letters might someday be part of the historical record of the war. The details he provides about his work and his role in covering the war illuminate the conditions in England, especially London, during this period, as well as on the continent as the war drew to a close. We can sense the excitement and danger of reporting on the war’s progress, and gain an appreciation for the amount of work it takes to provide quality journalism under such conditions.
The editors of this book have included explanatory text for most of the letters, which help place the letters into context, which is incredibly helpful, and improves the value of the collection, as do the various transcripts of newspaper articles that Cronkite produced during this period. For those with an interest in journalism or the Second World War, this book provides valuable insights into both, while still being both readable and entertaining.
July 8, 2015
This was a somewhat interesting compilation of letters from Walter Cronkite to, mostly, his wife over the course of his service with UP during WWII. It is not quite a memoir, and probably qualifies as history to the extent of the author's commentary on the context in which Cronkite penned/typed his letters home. There are apparently a few instances where Cronkite's letters indicate that his later recollections, when he wrote of his experiences for his books, that he had suffered from the same kinds of problems that later journalists (think Brian Williams) suffer in getting their facts right. But there seems no good reasons from book to attempt removing Cronkite from his place as the most trusted journalist ever.
One interesting tidbit was brought up in both the introduction and in the epilog, and that is that Cronkite went off to college as a young man, but did not finish. In light of what political hay current journalists are making regarding some running for political office, who also did not finish their courses of study, I thought this a bit of irony.
If you wish to learn of WWII, this is not the right place to look - only in a very limited way is there as sense of the scope of the war. One small vignette of Cronkite turning down an invitation to join replacements headed for Bastogne reveals that, while he was often ready to follow the combat, as time wore on he had gained a certain amount of wisdom as to his own mortality.
One interesting tidbit was brought up in both the introduction and in the epilog, and that is that Cronkite went off to college as a young man, but did not finish. In light of what political hay current journalists are making regarding some running for political office, who also did not finish their courses of study, I thought this a bit of irony.
If you wish to learn of WWII, this is not the right place to look - only in a very limited way is there as sense of the scope of the war. One small vignette of Cronkite turning down an invitation to join replacements headed for Bastogne reveals that, while he was often ready to follow the combat, as time wore on he had gained a certain amount of wisdom as to his own mortality.
October 23, 2013
Loved the personal letters and insight into the life of the most respected newsman of the Century.
Darlingest Betsy...
It’s five minutes past one in the morning, I’m as limp as an old towel and I have no voice
I’m missing your letters. I worship you, darling.
It’s 12 o’clock, honey, and I’m after my beauty sleep. Please know that I miss you every minute and am terribly lonely for you. Forever and ever, your adoring husband, Walter
It seems so long -- much longer than just a year -- since I ran my fingers through your hair, and felt you close to me. It has been a hundred years since we danced together, and now I’m sure I’ve forgotten how to dance. It has been a century since I heard that giggle that everyone loves and I adore.
I’ve got a store of memories, my darling, that could last fifty years if need be. I could relive every moment with you ten thousand times and never grow tired of them. I could start with a July day when a saucy “blonde” in a big hat interrupted an imaginative jam session and carry on until a bleak December morning when a beautiful red-head drove away from a Hoboken pier. There is nothing that happens to me that, in some way, doesn’t remind me of wonderful moments with you.
“Right from the beginning, I took the attitude that I was talking to one person when I was in front of the camera. It was always on a one-on-one basis.”
Darlingest Betsy...
It’s five minutes past one in the morning, I’m as limp as an old towel and I have no voice
I’m missing your letters. I worship you, darling.
It’s 12 o’clock, honey, and I’m after my beauty sleep. Please know that I miss you every minute and am terribly lonely for you. Forever and ever, your adoring husband, Walter
It seems so long -- much longer than just a year -- since I ran my fingers through your hair, and felt you close to me. It has been a hundred years since we danced together, and now I’m sure I’ve forgotten how to dance. It has been a century since I heard that giggle that everyone loves and I adore.
I’ve got a store of memories, my darling, that could last fifty years if need be. I could relive every moment with you ten thousand times and never grow tired of them. I could start with a July day when a saucy “blonde” in a big hat interrupted an imaginative jam session and carry on until a bleak December morning when a beautiful red-head drove away from a Hoboken pier. There is nothing that happens to me that, in some way, doesn’t remind me of wonderful moments with you.
“Right from the beginning, I took the attitude that I was talking to one person when I was in front of the camera. It was always on a one-on-one basis.”
December 28, 2016
Once again I bemoan the fact that goodreads does not offer the option of half stars in the rating. This book definitely earned more than an average rating, however, a few things kept me from giving it a four star rating.
As an amateur historian, I absolutely love getting to read and experience primary documents. One of the things I appreciated most from Cronkite IV's narration was his explanation of the discrepancies between his grandfather's memoirs and the letters. In his preview to one of the letters, Cronkite IV explained the reason most historians prefer primary source documents to remembered histories such as memoirs or autobiographies. I cannot remember Cronkite IV's exact words but I do remember going "yes!" after I read that.
That being said, I think that the book suffered from far too much narration on the part of Cronkite IV. I realize that none of Betsy's letters remain so the role of a narrator was necessary to keep the conversation from being too one sided and to fill in information not covered or referenced obscurely in the text. Cronkite IV added too much in many places which detracted from the letters themselves. This reason alone is why I could not give this book a four star rating. It came close but fell just shy.
This is an excellent book for those who cannot get enough of WWII history and of journalism in general.
As an amateur historian, I absolutely love getting to read and experience primary documents. One of the things I appreciated most from Cronkite IV's narration was his explanation of the discrepancies between his grandfather's memoirs and the letters. In his preview to one of the letters, Cronkite IV explained the reason most historians prefer primary source documents to remembered histories such as memoirs or autobiographies. I cannot remember Cronkite IV's exact words but I do remember going "yes!" after I read that.
That being said, I think that the book suffered from far too much narration on the part of Cronkite IV. I realize that none of Betsy's letters remain so the role of a narrator was necessary to keep the conversation from being too one sided and to fill in information not covered or referenced obscurely in the text. Cronkite IV added too much in many places which detracted from the letters themselves. This reason alone is why I could not give this book a four star rating. It came close but fell just shy.
This is an excellent book for those who cannot get enough of WWII history and of journalism in general.
August 19, 2013
Cronkite's War: His World War II Letters Home does not disappoint in its glimpses into the private life of the broadcasting icon as he shared his experiences with the love of his life in letters home. The book is written by Cronkite's grandson and namesake in collaboration with Maurice Isserman and is a study in respect and admiration, tinged by just a touch of envy -that envy that every historian feels for those who lived in the world we can only experience vicariously.
As you read the letters the young Walter wrote to his beloved Betsy, you see his brave front in perilous places, and can enjoy and admire his careful recounting of moments he had to know were historic in order that the woman who shared his life could share these times with him.
I love this historical period, and read and study everything I can about it. That aside, I grew up, as many of us did, watching Walter Cronkite bring honest journalism into my world, and now I am reading about the world that formed the man himself. It is heady stuff, and I recommend this book heartily.
As you read the letters the young Walter wrote to his beloved Betsy, you see his brave front in perilous places, and can enjoy and admire his careful recounting of moments he had to know were historic in order that the woman who shared his life could share these times with him.
I love this historical period, and read and study everything I can about it. That aside, I grew up, as many of us did, watching Walter Cronkite bring honest journalism into my world, and now I am reading about the world that formed the man himself. It is heady stuff, and I recommend this book heartily.
August 19, 2017
Cronkite's War is a collection of letters between Walter Cronkite and his wife during World War II. Sadly, it's a one side conversation as we have only the letter from Walter, and none of the letters written to him. It's a bit of an open diary as Cronkite moves from the U.S. to England and eventually into continental Europe as the war progresses toward V-E Day.
To me, it paints a rather endearing portrait of the legendary newsman as his love and longing for his wife is evident throughout. However, it's strengths are also it's weakness and the way in which every letter ends with him stating his loneliness without his wife (and all to often and in equal measure, the family dog) gets old very quick. I ended up feeling a little sorry for his wife who seems to be held in equal regard to their cocker spaniel.
Still an enjoyable read with nice glimpses of history and humanity and we get the tale of WWII from a man who is neither entirely soldier or civilian.
To me, it paints a rather endearing portrait of the legendary newsman as his love and longing for his wife is evident throughout. However, it's strengths are also it's weakness and the way in which every letter ends with him stating his loneliness without his wife (and all to often and in equal measure, the family dog) gets old very quick. I ended up feeling a little sorry for his wife who seems to be held in equal regard to their cocker spaniel.
Still an enjoyable read with nice glimpses of history and humanity and we get the tale of WWII from a man who is neither entirely soldier or civilian.
September 1, 2013
I adore books written in letter form and was prepared to love this one, full of letters written from Walter Cronkite to his wife during WWII. I wound up skimming the letters as so many were mundane accounts of clothing problems, drinks after work, housing woes...and such sadness and longing to have his wife join him on assignment in Europe. That said, intimate profiles of political and military leaders, battles planned and carried out, and personal opinions of same would probably have been censored out, so I was happy to glimpse what I could through the eyes of a newsman I listened to on the nightly news for years.
October 28, 2018
I loved reading his letters to Betsy. The love between them was deep, something that is hard to find these days. Even though they were separated for 28 months, they stayed true to each other. Yes, there were very scary times, but Walter never failed to write letters home to assure Betsy he was OK. Also, his love for his little cocker spaniel, Judy was so sweet! He always made sure to include her in his letters. Walter Cronkite IV did a wonderful job explaining who each of the people were in the letters as well as describing the different situations that his grandfather wrote about. I thought this was a very well written book.
May 14, 2018
it's amazing to think that Cronkite retired from nightly broadcasting in 1981, the year I was born. Yet, reading his letters, I could hear his voice and familiar cadence in my head, a testament to his place in recent history. His letters home were not all that exciting, but I think any fan of Cronkite's would enjoy this peek into his private life. I appreciated the fact that the author doesn't shy away from pointing out possible embellishments or mistaken remembrances of events first described in his letters, and then later in his memoir.
March 25, 2014
Wow. Love history and good handwritten letters but is it just me or does Cronkite come across bit a prick. Insufferably griping while others caught and died. Both soldier & civilian?
He is a good reporter and did spend two years away from his family but it just came across as much as griping as it did a record of a major historical event.
It could just be me.
He is a good reporter and did spend two years away from his family but it just came across as much as griping as it did a record of a major historical event.
It could just be me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 26, 2014
I wasn't sure how I would feel about this, listening to someone read Cronkite's letters. It was more than that. The author, his grandson, also put context behind the letters and noted when some appeared to be missing. It was a great glimpse into Cronkite's mind and his passion for his wife and for his job.
February 26, 2015
Growing up with Cronkite, I couldn't pass this up. What letters. His letters chronicled history.... and so many years away with no visits home. Betsy sure had foresight to save them.
I would like to know why his dog was named Judy. I do miss when news was NEWS and not entertainment. And I do miss his reassuring and confident voice.
I would like to know why his dog was named Judy. I do miss when news was NEWS and not entertainment. And I do miss his reassuring and confident voice.
August 9, 2015
Fascinating Insights into WW 2 from A War Correspondent's Perspective
I listened to the unabridged audio book and found the entire book fascinating. It is over 11 hours but well worth the time and effort. Known later as "The Most Trusted Man in America" this book documents the letters that Walter Cronkite wrote home to his wife Betsy as a war correspondent for the United Press. I recommend it.
I listened to the unabridged audio book and found the entire book fascinating. It is over 11 hours but well worth the time and effort. Known later as "The Most Trusted Man in America" this book documents the letters that Walter Cronkite wrote home to his wife Betsy as a war correspondent for the United Press. I recommend it.
March 11, 2018
Fascinating account told through documentation and letters, relating the mindset of newly married UP wire service reporter who was reporting from Europe during World War II. Lovely letters home to his wife Betsy. Especially of interest were the missions Cronkite would join to get a first-hand account of what it was like for the American soldiers. Recommended.
November 12, 2013
Great narrative about the war and mostly Walter Cronkite's beginning in journalism. I wish we still wrote letters to one another like they did back then. I know we have e-mail and it's not important, but there is something about holding a letter in your hand.
February 3, 2014
Growing up listening to Walter Cronkite, I had my mental image of the trusted icon. But listening to these letters to his new bride (and the other redhead - their cocker spaniel) made me like him as a person.
the audio, BTW, was nicely narrated. I suspect that the narration enhances the book.
the audio, BTW, was nicely narrated. I suspect that the narration enhances the book.
August 13, 2014
It wasn't what I expected. Nice to see how he wrote to his wife, and to see he kept her informed. I was expecting a little more about what he was going through but understand why he didn't include it in letters home.
October 22, 2014
interesting look at how he came of age in the 1940 - color blindness kept him out of the armed service, so yes the things he experience were not so good, but compared to the other men his age{20's] he had it really good in London.
January 3, 2015
This is a wonderful book containing the letters he wrote home to his beloved wife. The only thing that would have made this better was if Betsy's letters to him would have survived. They were an amazing couple and he, a national icon. I loved this book.
Read
March 30, 2015I listened to about a third of this. I think it would be a much better book to browse through. The entry paragraphs were usually interesting but sometimes the letters themselves were too much. I think someday I will pick it up again in a physical format.
March 2, 2017
This book shed light on what a war correspondent's life was like during WWII. It wasn't always very exciting (lots of drinks and dinners) and neither was this book. His grandson often introduced the letters Cronkite wrote home to his wife and this was often repetitive.
September 8, 2013
Legendary reporter Walter Cronkite wrote home to his wife during WWII.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews