Overview

Joe Olexa enlisted in the US Army in December 1940, figuring that if he was going to be in a war, he might as well start training. Assigned to the 1st Infantry Division, nicknamed “The Big Red One,” he served in Company L of its 26th Infantry Regiment for the next four years. Along the way he trained with the division in maneuvers in the United States; shipped to England in 1942; landed at Oran, Algeria, in the Operation Torch landings of November 1942; and fought in Tunisia, Sicily, Normandy, Belgium, and Germany. Olexa was one of the first group of enlistees that brought the division up to full strength in the buildup prior to Pearl Harbor, and was a sergeant by the time he went overseas. He served as a squad leader, platoon sergeant, and acting platoon leader, outlasting nearly all the men in his company. His memoir features accounts of unusual adventures in Tunisia when his battalion was detached from the rest of the division, and presents a detailed and intense account of his platoon’s experiences at El Guettar. Later, Olexa became a “Sea Scout,” going ashore on Sicily the night before the invasion to provide signals to guide landing craft onto the beach at Gela. After landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day, Olexa was selected by his battalion commander to hunt snipers and lead patrols in addition to his usual duties, and he fought in Normandy until wounded in late June. He rejoined his company in mid-September 1944 and was heavily involved in the capture of Aachen in October. His memoir, originally composed in the late 1970s and expertly edited and annotated by James Smither, offers remarkable insights into the experiences of an ordinary soldier who found himself in truly extraordinary situations.

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9781574418989

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Reviews

"""[I]t has been skillfully edited to give the reader a clear impression of what the author experienced during the war. It is one of the most in-depth and detailed memoirs of an infantryman in the Big Red One, particularly an enlisted soldier. The book is enjoyable and informative.""--World War II History ""This is an excellent in-depth account of infantry combat in World War II. Smither has done a fabulous job of cross-checking the author's manuscript with archival and secondary sources. This book should have a wide readership as it would appeal to lay readers interested in a story of combat at the sharp end during World War II.""--Peter R. Mansoor, author of The GI Offensive in Europe: The Triumph of American Infantry Divisions ""Death and Life in the Big Red One is a fascinating, well written, illuminating, and expertly edited memoir. Olexa's unit was famous and has a following. This book will appeal to WWII scholars and also a popular audience of readers who enjoy veterans' memoirs.""--John C. McManus, author of The Dead and Those About to Die: D-Day, The Big Red One at Omaha Beach ""Smither expertly weaves together the battlefield experiences of Joe Olexa, a combat infantryman in the 1st Infantry Division who was with the Big Red One through North Africa, Sicily, Normandy, and into Germany. It is a perceptive study of the combat effectiveness of the American citizen-soldier as well as an analysis of the adaptability, ingenuity, and bravery of NCO leadership at the battalion level and below. This work provides a valuable supplement to Eugene Sledge's With the Old Breed. What a terrific account of WWII combat!""--Ronald Marcello, author of Small Town America in World War II and editor of Remembering Pearl Harbor"

"""This is an excellent in-depth account of infantry combat in World War II. Smither has done a fabulous job of cross-checking the author's manuscript with archival and secondary sources. This book should have a wide readership as it would appeal to lay readers interested in a story of combat at the sharp end during World War II.""--Peter R. Mansoor, author of The GI Offensive in Europe: The Triumph of American Infantry Divisions ""Death and Life in the Big Red One is a fascinating, well written, illuminating, and expertly edited memoir. Olexa's unit was famous and has a following. This book will appeal to WWII scholars and also a popular audience of readers who enjoy veterans' memoirs.""--John C. McManus, author of The Dead and Those About to Die: D-Day, The Big Red One at Omaha Beach ""Smither expertly weaves together the battlefield experiences of Joe Olexa, a combat infantryman in the 1st Infantry Division who was with the Big Red One through North Africa, Sicily, Normandy, and into Germany. It is a perceptive study of the combat effectiveness of the American citizen-soldier as well as an analysis of the adaptability, ingenuity, and bravery of NCO leadership at the battalion level and below. This work provides a valuable supplement to Eugene Sledge's With the Old Breed. What a terrific account of WWII combat!""--Ronald Marcello, author of Small Town America in World War II and editor of Remembering Pearl Harbor"

Author Information

JAMES R. SMITHER, professor of history, established the Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project in 2006, which records and archives oral history interviews with US military veterans, civilians, and foreign nationals. He is the editor of A Surgeon's Civil War: The Letters and Diary of Daniel M. Holt, MD.

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