Arn's War

This memoir of World War II, written by Edward C. Arn, an infantry captain who served in Company F, 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Division, is a valuable addition to military history and social history. Arn takes readers on a wartime journey with him in the European Theatre of Operations through a clear and honest account of combat from the viewpoint of a sensitive and acute "civilian in uniform." Arn describes his life during the Great Depression, his motivation to volunteer, his stateside basic training, and his role as an infantry instructor. Assigned overseas as a replacement a few weeks after the D-Day invasion of Normandy, Arn joined the 30th Division, a former National Guard unit partially from Tennessee, nicknamed "Old Hickory" in honor of President Andrew Jackson. Arn entered combat and proved his worth in the hedgerows of Normandy, the Battle of Mortain, the push through northern France and the Netherlands, the Battle of the Buldge, the Ardennes Campaign, and the invasion of the German heartland to the Elbe River. During his sixteen months on the front lines, Arn underwent a transformation from an apprehensive novice into a battle-tested veteran.