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Red Arrow across the Pacific: The Thirty-Second Infantry Division during World War II

$40.00
The Thirty-Second “Red Arrow” Infantry Division played a crucial role for the Allied Forces in the Pacific. Learn how this National Guard unit with origins in the Midwest became one of the most effective—and most battle-tested—US combat units in WWII.
SKU: 9781976600333
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Summary

Red Arrow across the Pacific reveals the long-overdue story of the Thirty-Second “Red Arrow” Infantry Division and the crucial role it played in the Pacific during World War II. Discover how this National Guard unit with origins in Wisconsin and Michigan became one of the first US military units deployed overseas in World War II, eventually logging more combat hours than any other US Army division.

Far more than a traditional battle narrative, Red Arrow across the Pacific offers a cultural history of the Red Arrow’s wartime experience, from its mobilization in 1940, to its deployment across New Guinea, Australia, and the Philippines, to its postwar occupation of Japan. Drawing from letters, memoirs, and interviews, author Mark D. Van Ells lets the soldiers speak for themselves, describing in their own words the terror of combat, their impressions of foreign lands, the struggle to maintain their own humanity, and the many ways the war profoundly changed them.

Nuanced and remarkably thorough, this book explores the dramatic evolution of the Thirty-Second Infantry Division and reveals how the story of the Red Arrow reflects the experience of the US military during World War II.


Author

Mark D. Van Ells is a professor of history at Queensborough Community College of the City University of New York. He received his PhD in history from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and is a native of the Badger State. Van Ells is the author of To Hear Only Thunder Again: America’s World War II Veterans Come Home and America and World War I: A Traveler’s Guide.

Summary

Red Arrow across the Pacific reveals the long-overdue story of the Thirty-Second “Red Arrow” Infantry Division and the crucial role it played in the Pacific during World War II. Discover how this National Guard unit with origins in Wisconsin and Michigan became one of the first US military units deployed overseas in World War II, eventually logging more combat hours than any other US Army division.

Far more than a traditional battle narrative, Red Arrow across the Pacific offers a cultural history of the Red Arrow’s wartime experience, from its mobilization in 1940, to its deployment across New Guinea, Australia, and the Philippines, to its postwar occupation of Japan. Drawing from letters, memoirs, and interviews, author Mark D. Van Ells lets the soldiers speak for themselves, describing in their own words the terror of combat, their impressions of foreign lands, the struggle to maintain their own humanity, and the many ways the war profoundly changed them.

Nuanced and remarkably thorough, this book explores the dramatic evolution of the Thirty-Second Infantry Division and reveals how the story of the Red Arrow reflects the experience of the US military during World War II.


Author

Mark D. Van Ells is a professor of history at Queensborough Community College of the City University of New York. He received his PhD in history from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and is a native of the Badger State. Van Ells is the author of To Hear Only Thunder Again: America’s World War II Veterans Come Home and America and World War I: A Traveler’s Guide.

Products specifications
Details
PublisherWisconsin Historical Society Press
ISBN Number

978-1-9766-0033-3

Publication Year2024
Page Count512
Illustrations62 b&w photos. 8 maps.
Format/BindingPaperback
Trim Size6 x 9 inches

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Products specifications
Details
PublisherWisconsin Historical Society Press
ISBN Number

978-1-9766-0033-3

Publication Year2024
Page Count512
Illustrations62 b&w photos. 8 maps.
Format/BindingPaperback
Trim Size6 x 9 inches
Product tags
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