Battleground by W.E.B. Griffin

The Corps 4 Battleground by W.E.B. Griffin

In the last book in this series, Griffin brought the corps to Guadalcanal, but he did so in large brush strokes mostly from an eagle-eyed view. In Battleground, he retraces some of that territory from his characteristic boots-level perspective, going over the lightning preparations for the invasion and reminding the reader again how the navy pulled out—stranding the marines on the island without giving them all their gear or even all their personnel. Griffin rarely puts the actual battles in the center ring, but you feel like you’re there anyway as reports come in and the consequences are dealt with. You also see quite a few of the people you’ve come to care about go into harm’s way.

 

In addition to battles with the Japanese, there are also plenty of the petty conflicts between the branches of service and between officers—the sort of stuff that you would think people would put behind them as they fight the Second World War but which human nature insists would become even more prevalent as the tension mounts. Even Magic—the greatest secret of the war (the U.S. had broken several Japanese codes)—is put at risk more than once for the basest of reasons.

 

Yet, it’s this pettiness and corruption that lets Griffin’s true heroes shine even brighter—men and women making every sacrifice to serve their country in one of its darkest hours. These books are not only exciting, they inspire us to imagine how we would (hopefully) step up when our country needs us.