[.ca] General Patton: A Soldier's Life (ISBN 0060009829)

Revisionist History:
Professor Hirshson spent eleven years writing this thinly veiled character assassination of a great field commander. Hirshson makes the wild claim that Patton's fiery speeches directly resulted in atrocities in the Italian campaign. This is pure speculation and impossible to support given the other well documented instances of spontaneous atrocities on the battlefield by the allies, in particular the British, Canadians and Russians. Furthermore, the author describes a civilian riot put down by allied fire as an atrocity. Hirshson also liberally quotes from sources with known animosity toward Patton. Wood, Devers, etc. were self-serving in their comments and Hughes was the worst of the lot. The most disappointing aspect of this book is what's missing. I had expected that Hirshson, as a biographer of General W.T. Sherman, would have spent some time drawing an analogy between their careers al la Victor Davis Hanson's book The Soul of Battle. Sherman and Patton were both great generals who cut wide swaths through the enemy with their armies. Both men were considered crazy by many of their peers. Both men's careers were jeopardized because of political naivete. In summary, this book is an hysterical portrayal of Patton and should be read only after more balanced accounts.

I liked it very much:
I really enjoyed reading this work. I thought the style was very readable and the of course the subject matter was very interesting. The other reviewers of this work dislike the fact that Hirshson blames Patton's speeches for the atrocities in Italy. Agreed the assertion is silly but it is clearly opinion. The author also clearly thinks that the general was too dismissive of academcs and reporters etc. All in all I think it is well worth the read. As with any work this ones shows the reader much about the author in addition to the subject. I learned much about WWII and WWI. I found the Tank/Calvary intellectual battle that went on throughout Patton's career very interesting. I would recomend the book. I would also note that the author is not a "Blood and Guts" kinda guy.

Average:
While I'm not as well versed in the historical accuracy of this book, it's clear to me the author was diligent in his research.To me, that makes this book credible on nearly every level which is the most important part of a biography. It truly stinks to spend 2 weeks reading a book only to find out some of the information presented as facts are actually fiction. That is not the case here. The author does paint an unflattering picture of Patton at times, but I think he is justified because let's face it, Patton was flawed. He was an outstanding field general. The author points that out. But he was an egomaniac, a racist, and foul-mouthed even by military standards. Yet Patton was critical of other WWII leaders - especially Montgomery - for many of these same faults... clearly hypocritcal. My one big complaint with this book is a complaint I have with a lot of military history. I need better and more maps to keep track of what is going on. When ever I read military history I get bogged down in the details and lose focus. Including more maps that are easier to read seems like an easy thing to do, but for some reason this book has about 10 maps and they are not very helpful. How about 40 maps that clearly depict advances and detail troop movements the way they are actually described in the writing. I especially like the viewpoints of Patton's PR officer Quirk toward the end of the book. Those were very interesting. I also liked the way he portrayed Patton's dismissal and untimely death. He painted a picture of a man that was used as a scapegoat, then uses evidence to back that up. Patton's supposed lack of denazifying the German government was overblown and the author supports that point by detailing the outrage of the nation when Patton was dismissed. However, when you consider Patton's anti-semitic nature it is clear why the General was dismissed. And, I really like the way the author points out the fitting way that Patton was burried and dispells some of the myths of Patton at the end of this book. I would suggest if you are looking for a book on Patton, you could find a better read and would suggest reading some of the other reviewers who have suggested alternatives. However, I won't downgrade the authors somewhat slanted view of Patton. He credits the General when he deserves it and points out his flaws that were clear for everyone to see.

An average biography:
As noted by other reviewers, the author has a forward where he pats himself on the back for the extensive research he has done with primary sources that other Patton biographers haven't. But most of the sources prove to be a waste of time. The detailed material he provides about the Patton's ancestors is completely irrelevant to an understanding of the man, it is filler that could be greatly abbreviated. We really don't need to read quotes from letters they sent each other. The author also pads the book by repeating, word for word, quotes or paragraphs contining conclusions he has made in diffgerent parts of the book. Does he really think we've forgotten what we've already read? His writing is also strangely stilted at times, using verb and adjectives that don't seem to fit the context of the paragraphs. I was not offended by the opinion that Patton's irrational, hyperbolic pep talks to the troops encouraged the atrocities that they committed, I think that it is a fair conclusion and part of Patton's character as shown by other statements, acknowledged by other biographers, and Patton, himself. He shot off his mouth without thinking. Another flaw of the book is the maps. The author gives great detail about the places attacked, passed through, avoided, etc. but the maps show only the larger towns. The author's conclusion is that Patton was a great tactical general with many character flaws, which seems to be an accurate assessment. It just isn't a well written book.

A Disgrace to the Profession of Historian:
Quite frankly, this is a dreadful book. It begins with an unbelievably self-serving and pompous introduction, in which the author strives to awe the reader with his credentials and the extent of his research, which sound most impressive, then proceeds to create a "biography" of dismaying shallowness and superficiality. While Hirshson repeatedly empahsizes the "freshness" and "newness" of his book, in truth the text lacks the personal insights and details of Ladislas Farago's "Patton: Ordeal and Triumph," while at the same time falling far short of the military analysis--both in the area of strategy and tactics as well as the realities of military life--that are the hallmarks of Carlo D'Este's "Patton: A Genius for War." Both are immeasurably superior to Hirschson's work. The reader is left with the distinct impression that the only times Hirschson went to any great lengths to analyze and interpret the wealth of material he allegedly accessed were in those passages where he sought to portray Patton as a proto-fascist or as the instigator of wartime atrocities. At the same time, some of the most significant events in Patton's career, particularly in his service in the ETO, are either given short shrift or ignored altogether by Hirschson. In doing so he has done a great disservice to the profession of historian. Equally disturbing is his prediliction for giving credence and lending authority to the military opinions of officers who never served at the command level that Patton did, but who felt themselves "qualified" to pass judgment on Patton's fitness for command and the decisions he made as commander of the Seventh and later Third Armies. Hirschson also makes a great song-and-dance over Patton's dismissal from command of the Fifteenth Army, building a myth that Patton's dismissal has been fraudulently presented to the American public as having been done in response to his anti-Soviet sentiments rather than his refusal to comply with Allied de-Nazification decrees. ... The \omoney\c that would be spent on this book would be better spent on Farago and/or D'Este.