Red Blood, Black Sand

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by Chuck Tatum

A story of heroism, friendship, and courage in World War 2—as seen in the award-winning HBO miniseries The Pacific.

In 1944, the U.S. Marines were building the 5th Marine Division—also known as “The Spearhead”—in preparation for the invasion of the small, Japanese-held island of Iwo Jima...

When Chuck Tatum began Marine boot camp, he was just a smart-aleck teenager eager to serve his country. Little did he know that he would be training under a living legend of the Corps—Medal of Honor recipient John Basilone, who had almost single-handedly fought off a Japanese force of three thousand on Guadalcanal.

It was from Basilone and other sergeants that Tatum would learn how to fight like a Marine and act like a man—skills he would need when he hit the black sand of Iwo Jima with thirty thousand other Marines.

Red Blood, Black Sand is the story of Chuck’s two weeks in hell, where he would watch his hero, Basilone, fall, where the enemy stalked the night, where snipers haunted the day, and where Chuck would see his friends whittled away in an eardrum-shattering, earth-shaking, meat grinder of a battle. This is the island, the heroes, and the tragedy of Iwo Jima—through the eyes of one who survived it.

Our thoughts on Red Blood, Black Sand

Our favourite quote from Red Blood, Black Sand

As anyone who has ever walked the red carpet will tell you, it is a crowded and chaotic affair, the most important rule of which is to keep things moving. In spite of this, for a few minutes, as Chuck recounted his story of heroism and loss, reliving every moment, the red carpet at the Chinese Theatre ground to a halt. Nobody asked us to move. Nobody interrupted. Everybody waited. Even the Hollywood PR machine knew to pay the moment and the man the proper respect.

Book Summary

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As anyone who has ever walked the red carpet will tell you, it is a crowded and chaotic affair, the most important rule of which is to keep things moving. In spite of this, for a few minutes, as Chuck recounted his story of heroism and loss, reliving every moment, the red carpet at the Chinese Theatre ground to a halt. Nobody asked us to move. Nobody interrupted. Everybody waited. Even the Hollywood PR machine knew to pay the moment and the man the proper respect.

— Chuck Tatum, Red Blood, Black Sand