Growing Up Patton: Reflections on Heroes, History, and Family Wisdom - Softcover

Patton, Benjamin; Scruby, Jennifer

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0425255948 ISBN 13: 9780425255940

Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2012

Synopsis

The grandson of the legendary World War II general George S. Patton Jr., documentary filmmaker Benjamin Patton, explores his family legacy and shares the inspirational wit and wisdom that his grandfather bestowed upon his only son and namesake.

In revealing personal correspondence written between 1939 and 1945, General Patton Jr. espoused his ideals to Benjamin’s father, then a cadet at West Point. Dispensing advice on duty, heroism and honor with the same candor he used ordering the Third Army across Europe, Patton shows himself to be as dynamic a parent as a military commander.

Following in those famous footsteps, Benjamin’s father became a respected and decorated hero of both the Korean and Vietnam wars. Ironically, as he rose to major general, he also proved himself just as brave, flamboyant, flawed and inspiring as his father had been.

A study of a great American original, Growing Up Patton features some of the pivotal figures in Benjamin’s father’s life, including Creighton Abrams, the WWII hero who became his greatest mentor; Charley Watkins, a daredevil helicopter pilot in Vietnam; Manfred Rommel, the son of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel; Joanne Patton, the author’s mother and a resourceful fighter in her own right; and Benjamin’s mentally challenged brother, George. Growing Up Patton explores how the Patton cultural legacy lives on, and in the end, reveals how knowing the history of our heritage—famous or not—can lead to a deeper understanding of ourselves.

INCLUDES NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED LETTERS BETWEEN GENERAL GEORGE S. PATTON AND HIS SON DURING WORLD WAR II
INCLUDES NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHS

About this title

About the Author

The grandson of WWII general George S. Patton Jr., documentary filmmaker Benjamin Patton specializes in biographies of individuals and families, as well as documentary-style commercial work. A former development executive and producer at Manhattan’s PBS affiliate, he also teaches filmmaking through his Fred’s Films workshops. Currently a graduate student in developmental psychology at Teacher’s College, Columbia University, Benjamin lives in New York City. 

A former editor at Elle and Vogue, Jennifer Scruby has also written for GQ; O. The Oprah Magazine; Lucky; Elle Decor; and the Financial Times.

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0425255948
• ISBN 13: 9780425255940
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368