Easy Company Soldier: The Legendary Battles of a Sergeant from World War II's "Band of Brothers"

Sgt. Don Malarkey takes us not only into the battles fought from Normandy to Germany, but into the heart and mind of a soldier who beat the odds to become an elite paratrooper, and lost his best friend during the nightmarish engagement at Bastogne.

Drafted in 1942, Malarkey arrived at Taccoa Camp in Georgia and was the 1 in 6 soldiers who earned their Eagle wings and went to England in 1943 to provide ground cover for the largest amphibious military attack in history: Operation Overlord. In the darkness of D-Day morning, Malarkey parachuted into France and, within days, was awarded a Bronze Star for his heroism in battle. He fought for 23 days in Normandy, nearly 80 in Holland, 39 in Bastogne; and nearly 30 more in and near Haguenau, France and the Ruhr pocket in Germany.

DON MALARKEY was born in 1921, and grew up in Astoria, Oregon. After trying to enlist in several branches of the service, he was drafted in 1942 and spent more consecutive days in combat than any other member of “E Company,” 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne--the most recognized fighting unit in American history. Today he lives in Oregon. 

BOB WELCH is a nationally recognized author and journalist whose book about the first World War II nurse to die after the landings at Normandy, American Nightingale, was featured on ABCs “Good Morning America,” and was an Oregon Book Award finalist. He lives in Oregon.