Flags of Our Fathers: Summary and book reviews of Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley, plus links to an excerpt from Flags of Our Fathers and a biography of James Bradley.

In this unforgettable chronicle of perhaps the most famous moment in American military history, James Bradley has captured the glory, the triumph, the heartbreak, and the legacy of the six men who raised the flag at Iwo Jima. Here is the true story behind the immortal photograph that has come to symbolize the courage and indomitable will of America. In February 1945, American Marines plunged into the surf at Iwo Jima--and into history. Through a hail of machine-gun and mortar fire that left the beaches strewn with comrades, they battled to the island's highest peak. And after climbing through a landscape of hell itself, they raised a flag. Now the son of one of the flag raisers has written a powerful account of six very different men who came together in a moment that will live forever. To his family, John Bradley never spoke of the photograph or the war. But after his death at age seventy, his family discovered closed boxes of letters and photos. In Flags of Our Fathers, James Bradley draws on those documents to retrace the lives of his father and the men of his Company. Following these men's paths to Iwo Jima, James Bradley has written a classic story of the heroic battle for the Pacific's most crucial island--an island riddled with Japanese tunnels and 22,000 fanatic defenders who would fight to the last man. But perhaps the most interesting part of the story is what happened after the victory. The men in the photo--three were killed during the battle--were proclaimed heroes and flown home, to become reluctant symbols. For two of them, the adulation was shattering. Only James Bradley's father truly survived, displaying no copy of the famous photograph in his home, telling his son only: "The real heroes of Iwo Jima were the guys who didn't come back." Few books have ever captured the complexity and furor of war and its aftermath as well as Flags of Our Fathers. A penetrating, epic look at a generation at war, this is history told with keen insight, enormous honesty, and the passion of a son paying homage to his father. It is the story of the difference between truth and myth, the meaning of being a hero, and the essence of the human experience of war.

Media Reviews

The New York Times [O]ne of the most instructive and moving books on war and its aftermath that we are likely to see, in part because it is instructive and moving in unexpected ways.   Publishers Weekly A simple thesis emerges from all the detail worked into this touching group portrait, in a comment by John Bradley: "The heroes of Iwo Jima are the guys who didn't come back." No reader will forget the lesson. Stephen Ambrose The best battle book I have ever read.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by jacob chastain
Flags Of Our Fathers
This is the best book I have ever read. I have read it three times now and it never gets old.

Rated of 5 by anonymous
very good book
This is by far the best book I have ever read. I am speechless.

Rated of 5 by J-Kax
Nonfiction Surprise!
I absolutely could not stand nonfiction novels. They killed me from the inside out.and now that I've read this book, I've changed that much at least. Very good book and a heart felt story line from the beginning.Purchase and Enjoy!!!

Rated of 5 by caleb davis
flags of our fathers.
This is by far one of the best books I have read...if not the best. It will get you hooked by the details and such wording that only James can write.

Rated of 5 by Jack Payan
Flags of Our Fathers
As the son of a WWI veteran (Purple Heart & Silver Star ) I thought the book was great. However, on page 333 of the paperback edition the author states " There was no doubt that the marines were in the bloodiest battle since...   Read More

Rated of 5 by KMcD
Extraordinary Times
I received an e-mail from a friend about a scouting trip to Washington. James Bradley was standing in front of the flag raising memorial and told the scouts the story of the six men in the memorial. Just that short snippet compelled me to go out...   Read More

...24 More Reader Reviews

Readalikes

If you liked Flags of Our Fathers, try these:

---

---

These are 2 of the 5 readalike suggestions for Flags of Our Fathers. Members have full access to all readalikes. If you are a member, please login. To find out more about membership, click here.

Books with similar themes

• History, Current Affairs & Science
  
• Australia & Pacific 
  
• 1940s & '50s 
  
• In Time of War & The Effects of War