God Have Mercy On Us!: A Story of 1918 - Couverture souple

Scanlon, William T.

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 196724331X ISBN 13 : 9781967243310

Editeur : Principle Press, 2025

Synopsis

A Forgotten World War I Masterpiece Returns

Written by a U.S. Marine veteran and first published in 1929, God Have Mercy On Us! is a forgotten WWI masterpiece. Although released as fiction, the book is a memoir based on William T. Scanlon’s own service on the Western Front and presents the war in the voice of an everyday American, unflinching and horrific in its honesty and realism. Scanlon reportedly wrote the book after a decade of struggling with what he had seen and experienced during the war.

William T. Scanlon, author of God Have Mercy on Us! says of himself: ‘I was born in Chicago and passed the early part of life working around the Union Stock Yards of Chicago, first painting lard pails, then hopping bells at the old Stock Yard Transit House. From there I graduated to the office of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway and later became chief clerk at the Illinois Central Railroad. When war was declared I had charge of the Traffic Department of the Morton Salt Company, Chicago. I joined the Marines in June 1917 and wheeled sand and oyster shells for three months at Paris Island. From there I moved to Quantico, where I became a member of the 97th Company and with them saw service in France. My discharge papers read: Battles, engagements, skirmishes, expeditions: — Verdun sector from March 15th to May 15th, 1918. Chateau Thierry sector from June 1st to July 15th, 1918. Soissons sector from July 17th to 23rd, 1918. Champagne sector from October 2nd to 10th, 1918. Meuse-Argonne sector from November 1st to 11th, 1918. After the War I drifted around the country and fi nally took up motion picture work at the A.B.C. Studio in Chicago, where I am now employed as a camera man.’

- from the jacket sleeve of the first edition, 1929

In 1929, this novel was joint winner of Houghton Mifflin’s $25,000 award (co-sponsored by the American Legion) for the year’s “best World War novel.” Over time, however, this prize-winning gem faded into obscurity, overshadowed by other novels of The Great War released in the same year. The story itself is a visceral first-person chronicle of 1918. Scanlon’s narrator leads us from the ferocious Battle of Belleau Wood through the brutal trench warfare that followed, all the way to the bitter relief of Armistice Day.

Scanlon depicts trauma and camaraderie with equal intensity, whether recounting a mustard gas attack’s ghastly aftermath or a rare moment of brotherhood amid carnage. By turns a gritty trench warfare survival story and a sobering anti-war testament, God Have Mercy On Us! captures the shell-shocked inner landscape of its Marine protagonist. Themes of courage, fear, and the struggle to retain one’s humanity lend the narrative a grave, moving power familiar to readers of classic war literature.

This new edition revives a novel that ranks among the great works of American war fiction, distinguished by its honesty, humanity, and haunting battlefield realism. God Have Mercy On Us! is not only a Marine Corps war story of unparalleled authenticity – it is a vital piece of forgotten war literature that speaks to the cost of war and the endurance of the human spirit – a long-neglected classic of WWI historical fiction primed for rediscovery.

This edition also includes additional annotation and information about the author.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Principle Press
• Date d'édition: 2025
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 196724331X
• ISBN 13: 9781967243310
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 230
• Coordonnées du fabricant: Manufactured by Amazon on behalf of the author; https://www.amazon.fr/hz/contact-us; ; c/o Amazon Media EU S.à.r.l., 38 Avenue John F. Kennedy; Luxembourg; L-1855; Luxembourg