Heroes All

A Story Inspired by The Crew of the LST 374

By: D.M. Hanson

Narrated by: Steve Corona

"Even before the attack on Pearl Harbor and America’s official entry into WWII, America’s maritime forces launched convoys to support our Allies in Europe through the Lend-Lease Act which gave then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt authority to send equipment and food to the war effort without violating our position of neutrality. Once the war was declared on the United States by Nazi Germany, and the Allies agreed upon a “Europe first” strategy, convoy operations became the main enabling effort in the war. While this was going on, the United States military was planning and then executing the largest amphibious operations in the history of warfare, culminating in the landings in Normandy, France on June 6, 1944.

During that timeframe, the names of Patton, Eisenhower, and Montgomery were immortalized. Less well known to the average American were the naval leaders in the Atlantic and Mediterranean campaigns. But this story is not about well-known figures in history, this is the story of the real heroes in any conflict: the young men who went to war and did their part.

Heroes All is a story of a single amphibious ship and her crew amongst the thousands of ships that took part in the war. The sailors that served on the Landing Ship, Tank, or LST, were truly unsung heroes in WWII and they remain so today. However, the young sailors that served on these ships were the critical enabler in the bloody battles that followed on land. With incredible fortitude, these young men did their duty and delivered men and supplies ashore again and again.

Heroes All is a wonderful tribute to a tiny slice of "America’s Greatest Generation". As I read the book, I could sense Donna’s mission was to tell the story to honor her father. She succeeded." (Andrew L. Lewis, Vice Admiral, USN - retired).

©2022 Donna M. Hanson (P)2022 Donna M. Hanson

A nice diversion from my normal reading material

This is not the normal kind of book that I’d pick up, but I fell easily into the story of these men of all ages (but mostly young) as they headed off to war. They’re just your average Joes from all walks of life. You think you know them, but they all hold surprises in their personalities just like we all do. The kid off the streets can be found reading philosophy books in his bunk during off-hours. Two guys who hate each other purely out of habit find they have more in common than they thought, even a similar heritage, and learn to see each other with respect. Strangers become family and boys become men as they face war.
 
Hanson uses a light hand with honesty as she takes us into their lives, giving a taste of what life was like on an LST.
 
The narrator did a wonderful job bringing the story to life. He was easy to listen to, more like enjoying a radio program than listening to someone read a book.

I give the story a 4.5 (only because I do like a little romance *wink*) and the narrator a 5) with a PG-13 rating for military language.

1-5 scale and what it means:
1: I couldn’t even finish it / just plain bad
2: I hope I didn’t pay for this / disappointing
3: I didn’t hate it, but it was still missing something / forgettable but inoffensive
3.5: On the line between good and ok / like, not love
4: Solid mind candy / worth reading
4.5: So very close to perfection! / must read
5: I could not put it down and I’m still thinking about it! / a true treasure

Movie Ratings in relation to my review:
Clean--Hallmark movies, some kissing, no nudity, no intimacy on or off "screen"
PG--Some innuendo but nothing kids don't hear every day, intimacy is all closed door
PG-13--some language (swear words not related to intimacy), more talk about intimacy, heavy petting, removal of clothing on screen, but intimacy is closed door.
PG-14—somewhere between PG-13 and R. Not erotica, but at least a paragraph of on-screen intimacy
R--swearing (F-bomb, on “screen” intimacy, sometimes feels like the whole story is about the intimacy and not the relationship or some other plot, but not always

Great story and audiobook

I really enjoyed listening to this story. It was an excellent story. The narrator was excellent and enjoyable to listen to. He does so many voices! It was amazing. 5 stars and 2 thumbs up to both the author and narrator!

Outstanding attention to detail

This is a great book with so much attention to detail. It is apparent the author did the research and had knowledge that is brought out about the LST 374. The characters come alive in this story and leave you wanting more. I look forward to other books by this author. Highly recommend!!