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Those Devils in Baggy Pants
Those Devils in Baggy Pants was originally published in 1951 by Ross S. Carter, a member of the 82nd Airborne Division during WWII. Carter, one of the three surviving members of his original platoon and Silver Star and Purple Heart awardee, sadly, was never able to see his book in print. Instead, the final chapters were pieced together by his brother, shortly after Carter's passing, with the help of Carter's meticulous notes. After its original publication in 1951, Those Devils in Baggy Pants sold one million copies, was a Reader's Digest condensed book, and was translated into multiple languages. Now, years after being out of print, the hit bestseller is being republished by a member of Carter's own family-David Ross Fraley. In republishing his relative's incredible tale it is Fraley's hope to honor both story and storyteller. Those Devils in Baggy Pants invites readers to join the C Company of the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment 82nd Airborne Division. Within Carter's WWII memoir is a love story unlike any other- one that depicts the unparalleled affection between comrades. With the novel's republish come additions to Carter's tale, including the history of his book and a journey through Carter's writing process. Those Devils in Baggy Pants, and Carter himself, will leave a lasting impression on any reader.
326 pages, Hardcover
Published December 23, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
February 13, 2024
My review is posted on GR under an earlier edition of the memoir. This is that review:
the kind of memoir you feel to the roots
🪖 All the men he trained with, fought beside, went on leave with are not left as cardboard cutouts or soulless caricatures. You see them in real time, listen to them, perhaps understand them.
They write their letters home to their mothers. They pen love letters to the women they hope to return home to marry. You want to hear, at the end, that this is what worked for them.
But. As much as regular life is rife with its ups and downs so is the life of a soldier. I've read memoirs of Americans, Germans, Canadians and Brits. I expect to read memoirs from men and women of other nations yet - Australia, Italy, Japan, India. The list is endless. But since the time of Homer, and before, there have been such writings and one thing is true and consistent - tragedy.
A soldier may have a lucky day or month but it's always followed by an unlucky day. They may survive one battle only to die in their sleep from an artillery barrage. They may survive one war only to lose another to cancer (as this author did). Achilles may defeat Hector only to find himself defeated by the arrow of Paris that unerringly finds its way to his vulnerable heel.
Life is as fluid and unpredictable as the waves of the sea.
You may face it with faith, or with a que sera sera attitude. But ultimately you will have to face it with courage too.
One of the better and more realistic, at times even philosophical, memoirs of human life lost to human combat.
We just cannot, it seems, keep ourselves from fighting one another 🪖
the kind of memoir you feel to the roots
🪖 All the men he trained with, fought beside, went on leave with are not left as cardboard cutouts or soulless caricatures. You see them in real time, listen to them, perhaps understand them.
They write their letters home to their mothers. They pen love letters to the women they hope to return home to marry. You want to hear, at the end, that this is what worked for them.
But. As much as regular life is rife with its ups and downs so is the life of a soldier. I've read memoirs of Americans, Germans, Canadians and Brits. I expect to read memoirs from men and women of other nations yet - Australia, Italy, Japan, India. The list is endless. But since the time of Homer, and before, there have been such writings and one thing is true and consistent - tragedy.
A soldier may have a lucky day or month but it's always followed by an unlucky day. They may survive one battle only to die in their sleep from an artillery barrage. They may survive one war only to lose another to cancer (as this author did). Achilles may defeat Hector only to find himself defeated by the arrow of Paris that unerringly finds its way to his vulnerable heel.
Life is as fluid and unpredictable as the waves of the sea.
You may face it with faith, or with a que sera sera attitude. But ultimately you will have to face it with courage too.
One of the better and more realistic, at times even philosophical, memoirs of human life lost to human combat.
We just cannot, it seems, keep ourselves from fighting one another 🪖
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review