Menu
The York Patrol: The Real Story of Alvin York and the Unsung Heroes Who Made Him World War I’s Most Famous Soldier
Bottom of the pile
10
/100
I Index Overall Rating
Readers
8/100Critics
13/100Scholars
Author:
James Carl Nelson
Publisher:
William Morrow
Date:
February 23, 2021
World War I soldier Alvin York became a legend when Gary Cooper played him in a blockbuster biopic. Here, Nelson unspools a more complicated narrative about York's heroics, giving voice to the sixteen other soldiers who fought beside him during his most celebrated mission.
What The Reviewers Say
... the author transports readers back in time, giving them not just a story about people but also a picture of what their world was like. His intent here isn’t to disprove or debunk the York legend—the man was a true hero, that much is indisputable—but rather to augment it, to add to what we know about Alvin York so that we can better understand what made him a hero. A stirring account of an important incident and time in American history..
While his narration of the movement of York’s unit, and the wider strategy of the American Expeditionary Forces, are sometimes ponderous, his reconstruction of the details of the 'York Patrol,' and how the York legend developed are solidly done. However, Nelson’s work is marred by an overuse of colloquialisms.
... an exhaustively researched but mercifully compact study.
Refreshingly, Nelson does not sugarcoat York’s remaining years, portraying him as anxious to help his impoverished community but naïve about human nature.
