With the Old Breed Audiobook By E. B. Sledge cover art

With the Old Breed

At Peleliu and Okinawa

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With the Old Breed

By: E. B. Sledge
Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Joe Mazzello, Tom Hanks (introduction)
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The celebrated 2010 HBO miniseries The Pacific, winner of eight Emmy Awards, was based on two classic books about the War in the Pacific, Helmet for My Pillow and With The Old Breed. Audible Studios, in partnership with Playtone, the production company co-owned by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, and creator of the award-winning HBO series Band of Brothers, John Adams, and The Pacific, as well as the HBO movie Game Change, has created new recordings of these memoirs, narrated by the stars of the miniseries. James Badge Dale (who portrayed Robert Leckie) and Joseph Mazello (who played Eugene Sledge) bring all the passion and emotion of their riveting television performances to these new audio productions.

With the Old Breed is a modern classic of military history AND has been called "one of the most important personal accounts of war that I have ever read," by distinguished historian John Keegan. Author E. B. Sledge served with the First Marine Division during World War II, and his first-hand narrative is unsurpassed in its sincerity. Sledge's experience shows in this fascinating account of two of the most harrowing and pivotal island battles of the Pacific theater.

On Peleliu and Okinawa, the action was extremely fierce. Amidst oppressive heat and over land obliterated by artillery shells, the combat raged ferociously. Casualties were extreme on both sides, and by the time the Americans had broken through at Okinawa, more than 62,000 Japanese soldiers were dead. Against military policy, Sledge scribbled notes and jammed them into his copy of the New Testament. Those notes form the backbone of what Navy Times said "has been called the best World War II memoir of an enlisted man."

BONUS AUDIO: Tom Hanks, one of the executive producers, has written and narrated an original introduction to With the Old Breed where he describes his appreciation for the book's author, the narrators, and the soldiers who had fought in the cauldron of the Pacific Theater during World War II.

For more from Audible and Playtone, click here.

©1981 E.B. Sledge (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
Biographies & Memoirs Military Military & War Wars & Conflicts World War II Veteran War Memoir Inspiring Thought-Provoking Imperial Japan

Featured Article: The 10 Best WWII Audiobooks for Every History Buff


World War II, although well-documented through various mediums, is the basis for a wide range of little-known stories from Europe and beyond that deserve to be heard. From firsthand accounts of soldiers on the front lines to stories of brave women behind the scenes, these are impactful stories of humans coming together in this time of global conflict. We’re sure you’ll find something captivating on our list of the best WWII audiobooks.

Raw Authenticity • Unflinching Honesty • Powerful Storytelling • Visceral Descriptions • Historical Significance

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Narrators matter and it is rare for me to buy an audiobook that I already own, and enjoy just to hear another perspective in the way it is read. But this book lends itself to the two pretty much different voices. Sledge wrote this book about his combat experience in his maturity. I think like many veterans of war, especially ground combat. some distance, in terms of years, often decades, is required to tell the story. But E. B. Sledge lived it and survived it, and not just physically, as a young man.

George Wilson does a terrific job of telling this story as an adult explaining what happened, in the voice of someone who not only survived, but is strong enough to remember and acknowledge the ordinary people who accomplished remarkable things, good, bad, and horrific. The drama comes from the written word, and Sledge does not add many flourishes. The stated facts of what he saw and experienced do not need them.

Marc Vietor reads in the voice of the young man experiencing the fatigue, terror and even humor, of the ground combat soldier in the Pacific of World War II. It is good to remember that Sledge and his fellow marines were very young. In another time they would have been deciding what they would do when they grew up. In that time they were just trying to stay alive to grow up.

I am glad I indulged myself and bought both books.

This is the second audio book of Sledge's work

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Joe mazzelo is a great narrator and sounds just like he did in the HBO series, the pacific. The story is incredibly moving. There's no overblown heroics, just the raw emotion, good, bad, and horrific of what Sledge witnessed.

I was shocked at some of the things he saw, and you instantly know that you will never be able to truly understand combat - unless of course you've seen it. Even then, the conditions, lack of technology and equipment they had compared to now...its a wonder we didn't lose more men. But, that's why the marines are the best. If you're a fan of history, not just WWII, you need to read or hear this book!

Incredible, raw and real

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An outstanding book! I now understand why this was one of the books selected for the HBO series The Pacific. This book, like most books, better displays and conveys the physical and emotional hardship of Sledge.

Great War Memoir, Great Voice Acting

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Every American should have to read this twice. So the snivelling candy asses will the prices paid for the freedoms they are so eager to give away.

Love this story.

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The greatest generation is right. These men went through something other soldiers won't, I dare say. Have you thanked a veteran today?

Incredible story, incredible book

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