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The Last Ridge: The Epic Story of America's First Mountain Soldiers and the Assault on Hitler's Europe |  | Author: Mckay Jenkins
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
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Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 617776
Media: Paperback
Pages: 336
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 0375759514
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.54215
EAN: 9780375759512
ASIN: 0375759514
Publication Date: November 9, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
When World War II broke out in Europe, the American army had no specialized division of mountain soldiers. But in the winter of 1939–40, after a tiny band of Finnish mountain troops brought the invading Soviet army to its knees, an amateur skier named Charles Minot “Minnie” Dole convinced the United States Army to let him recruit an extraordinary assortment of European expatriates, wealthy ski bums, mountaineers, and thrill-seekers and form them into a unique band of Alpine soldiers. These men endured nearly three years of grueling training in the Colorado Rockies and in the process set new standards for both soldiering and mountaineering. The newly forged 10th Mountain Division finally faced combat in the winter of 1945, in Italy’s Apennine Mountains, against the seemingly unbreakable German fortifications north of the Gothic Line. There, they planned and executed what is still regarded as the most daring series of nighttime mountain attacks in U.S. military history, taking Mount Belvedere and the sheer, treacherous face of Riva Ridge to smash the linchpin of the German army’s lines.
Drawing on unique cooperation from veterans of the 10th Mountain Division and a vast archive of unpublished letters and documents, The Last Ridge is written with enormous warmth, energy, and honesty. This is one of the most captivating stories of World War II, a blend of Band of Brothers and Into Thin Air. It is a story of young men asked to do the impossible, and succeeding.
From the Hardcover edition.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
 10th mtn descendant November 30, 2009
Mike Savage (Goffstown, NH United States)
my father was in the 10th in ww2 (85L). i have had the pleasure of meeting many of the individuals referenced and interviewed for this book. growing up the 10th had regular reunions. many times at ski resorts. a lot of these guys skied into their 80s..some still are believe it or not. anyway, there is a story in this book that my father told me about growing up. how a man in his unit was killed on patrol one night. like many war stories it is a horrific tale. his name was larry kohler. a few years ago my wife and i were in italy and made a visit to the american cemetery near florence (~4800 american dead are there) anyway, i asked the caretaker if any 10th soldiers are buried there. he said there were many but not referenced by unit. for some reason larry's name popped into my head. sure enough it is where larry is buried. so we made a visit to his grave.
 Last Ridge October 19, 2009
Fritz (California)
I had been looking for a broader view of the latter stages of the Italian
Campaign. This book doesn't do that, but I guess it didn't purport to do so.
It appears to be an excellent history of the 10th Division, its inception, its
formation and its training. It provides a worm's eye view of the taking of
Mt. Belvedere, a brutal and heroic tale. A few maps would have made the account
more comprehensible. How beautiful the side story that all the efforts in
Colorado to design and perfect gear were made useless when some Quartermaster
genius decided that "stuff" could be left stateside as superfluous. Nothing
changes in the US Army.
I had never known that a unit from the 10th "fought" on Kiska. I had a friend who had served with the 7th Division on Attu and Kiska and later on Kwajalein and Okinawa. His terse assessment was essentially, "We had plenty of Japs on Attu.........we didn't mind they had abandoned Kiska."
 Different views December 18, 2007
Marco Antonio Costa (Sao Paulo, SP Brazil)
0 out of 8 found this review helpful
It's ever interesting to see different views of some point of "fact" or history. We Brazilians for example, who had our soldiers fighting against the same enemy on the same region at the same time have a very diferent point of view about those facts. Yeah in deed ...A very curious, adaptable and malleable thing are the History...
The Troops Went Over the Mountain September 4, 2005
doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This is a winning piece of WWII history from McKay Jenkins, covering the unique and heroic 10th Mountain Division of the US Army. These guys were media darlings in their day, and the time is right for them to be remembered by history. Some WWII battles were taking place in snowy and mountainous areas in Europe. Allied soldiers, who had little mountain experience and no extreme-environment supplies, were being beaten badly by German soldiers who had centuries-old traditional knowledge of the terrain and conditions. A great network of outdoor sports volunteers and experienced recruits convinced the US Army of the need for a regiment of elite troops that would be victorious in the mountains if they received real skills in mountaineering, rock climbing, skiing, and winter survival. Specialized training and equipment testing took place at a special base in the Colorado Rockies, and the 10th Mountain Division soldiers won decisive victories against Axis positions in the mountains of Italy, and were indispensable in contributing to the overall defeat of the Germans. Jenkins utilizes stirring eyewitness accounts from the soldiers themselves, with plenty of nail-biting battle scenes and insights into the extreme hardships faced by these elite troops in their unique circumstances, as well as all soldiers in general. Great war reporting from Jenkins fleshes out the heroic and historic deeds of the 10th Mountain boys. [~doomsdayer520~]
Very good World II story August 8, 2005
A. Cicogna (Rye, New York United States)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Very good story.
It seems as soon as one finishes a World War II book there is another great one out there. This is truly one of those.
Great story line and a lot of fun to read. The 10th mountain division is one that is not as well known to the general public but should be. Having lived in Europe myself and attended Prep school in the mountains, this story brought back a lot of great memories of the Alps.
These guys were truly great, and it is interesting to read about European ski stars, instructors, famous explorers, Prep School boys and IVY Leaguers wanting to join the US mountain division to fight the Nazis.
Even though they never really got to use their Skiing and climbing talents to fight the war, as the author states at the end of the book, they were nontheless great warriors.
Their entry in the war was a late one, but their service to the cause and their country was a noble one.
The Bob Dole segment is also very interesting and the author takes great care to make us understand what war was like during the Second World War. He also takes great care in telling us what warfare does to soldiers under constant bombardement.
Good read and a great compliment to other WWII stories.
This is a story about heroes.
Soldiers never die they just fade away (General McCarthur)
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
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