In 1998, Andrew Carroll founded the Legacy Project with the goal of remembering Americans who have served this nation and preserving their letters for posterity. Since then, more than 50,000 war letters discovered in basements, attics, scrapbooks, and old trunks have poured in from around the country. The best of these letters are assembled in this extraordinary collection, offering unprecedented insight into the Civil War, World Wars I and II, Vietnam, Korea, the Cold War, the Persian Gulf, and even the fighting in Somalia and the Balkans.

Featured here are dramatic accounts of combat written immediately after the most ferocious battles American troops have ever faced; poignant expressions of love by homesick husbands and sweethearts; humorous anecdotes and gripes about insufferable conditions; thoughtful reflections on the nature of warfare; and perhaps most devastating, a startling number of last letters, heartfelt messages penned just hours before the sender was killed.

War Letters is a testament to the heroic contributions and astonishing literary voices of common soldiers, marines, airmen, and sailors, as well as war nurses, journalists, spies, and chaplains. There are also previously unpublished letters by such legendary figures as William T. Sherman, Clara Barton, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernie Pyle, Helen Keller, Douglas MacArthur, Julia Child, Dwight Eisenhower, Norman Schwarzkopf, and America's first black general, Benjamin O. Davis Sr.

"Individually, the war letters collected here are distinct, finely cut works of art, some more polished, some rougher around the edges, but each one exquisite in its own right. Together, they create a larger narrative: the story of Americans at war against themselves and other nations," observes Carroll in his introduction. These historic letters capture the full fury and intensity of warfare, and they reveal in vivid detail what the servicemen and -women of this nation have experienced and sacrificed on the front lines. War Letters is a lasting tribute to those who have fought for this country, and a celebration of the enduring power and lyricism of personal letters.

In the sweep of history, the experience of the lone soldier is often lost, but in this breathtaking collection the individual voices of the men and women who have served this nation come to life with a power and an eloquence that is both gripping and unforgettable. I can think of no better way to understand the horrors of war than to read the words of those who have been caught in its grasp, and these extraordinary letters offer some of the most dramatic eyewitness accounts of war imaginable. Quite simply, this is one of the greatest, most riveting books of war letters I have ever read.

Andrew Carroll has assembled a collection of previously unpublished letters that run the gamut of wartime emotion....An excellent compilation that I enjoyed reading very much — and believe you will, too.

Featured here are dramatic accounts of combat written immediately after the most ferocious battles American troops have ever faced; poignant expressions of love by homesick husbands and sweethearts; humorous anecdotes and gripes about insufferable conditions; thoughtful reflections on the nature of warfare; and perhaps most devastating, a startling number of last letters, heartfelt messages penned just hours before the sender was killed.

War Letters is a testament to the heroic contributions and astonishing literary voices of common soldiers, marines, airmen, and sailors, as well as war nurses, journalists, spies, and chaplains. There are also previously unpublished letters by such legendary figures as William T. Sherman, Clara Barton, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernie Pyle, Helen Keller, Douglas MacArthur, Julia Child, Dwight Eisenhower, Norman Schwarzkopf, and America's first black general, Benjamin O. Davis Sr.

"Individually, the war letters collected here are distinct, finely cut works of art, some more polished, some rougher around the edges, but each one exquisite in its own right. Together, they create a larger narrative: the story of Americans at war against themselves and other nations," observes Carroll in his introduction. These historic letters capture the full fury and intensity of warfare, and they reveal in vivid detail what the servicemen and -women of this nation have experienced and sacrificed on the front lines. War Letters is a lasting tribute to those who have fought for this country, and a celebration of the enduring power and lyricism of personal letters.