The Pattons: A Personal History of an American Family - Hardcover

Patton, Robert H.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0517590689 ISBN 13: 9780517590683

Publisher: Crown, 1994

Synopsis

Uses anecdotal family lore to illuminate the private life both of George S. Patton and of his ancestors, discussing the former's charm, shortcomings, and obsessiveness, and his effect on his family

About this title

Reviews

The author, grandson of the WW II hero, uses previously unavailable correspondence and records to offer a case study of the family structure that produced and sustained one of America's greatest generals. George S. Patton (1885-1945) was by his own admission "not normal." Egocentric and selfish, the product of an indulged childhood, he cultivated a self-image as a warrior-knight. Patton's immaturity embraced both an absence of malice and a need for constant condoning of his actions, including those based on prejudices and ignorances. Patton's wife and children excused his flaws and excesses because life with him was an exhilarating drama; his superiors forgave him because they liked him personally and respected him professionally. Readers may wish more attention had been paid to the general's military career. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A descendant's affectionate and affecting account of those who helped make Patton a celebrated family name in the often violent annals of the New World. Drawing on the private papers and memorabilia of his forebears, Patton offers an anecdotal, generation-spanning chronicle that extends back to the flight of Huguenots from 16th- century France. While he focuses on George S. Patton Jr., the four- star general who won enduring fame as a WW II commander, the author devotes considerable attention to other family notables, including several remarkable women and two fugitives from British justice. One, Hugh Mercer, fought with Bonnie Prince Charlie before fleeing Scotland for the colonies, where he became a general in the Revolutionary War. The other early arrival in America, a wanted criminal, changed his name to Patton (popular among ‚migr‚ highlanders, the name means ``king's pensioner'' in Gaelic). Covered as well are those who bore arms for the Confederacy and were subsequently obliged to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives in California. Beyond reporting his decision to break tradition and pursue a career outside the Army, the author has precious little to say for himself. He does, though, pay graceful, if brief, tribute to his own father, a retired major general with a chestful of decorations from Korea and Vietnam. Against the odds, moreover, Patton provides fresh, human-scale perspectives on his legendary grandfather, whose exploits are writ large in the pages of military history. History in an intimate, personal vein. (16 pages b&w photographs--not seen) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Gen. George B. Patton had his share of personality foibles, but the man himself will always remain obscure. Ostensibly a history of the entire warrior clan, this family reminiscence dwells almost exclusively upon its most famous member. It is embarrassingly personal in tone, heavily anecdotal but yielding nothing new about the general except family gossip. The author never knew his grandfather but insists upon calling him "Georgie" throughout as he attempts to reconcile the drama of this fey family with his own orderly existence. The bottom line is that the general had a delightfully inconsistent personality, but no one (save his wife) ever really knew him very well. Not a necessary choice for most libraries.
- Raymond L. Puffer, U.S. Air Force History Prog., Los Angeles
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In writing this study of his family, General Patton's grandson has used much material not made available to previous biographers. Still, his focus is inevitably and properly on the general himself, who appears to have been an even more complex personality (to put it delicately) than previous studies have indicated. But the general was not the only exotic branch on the Patton family tree, which appears to have abounded in eccentrics such as an editor would find hard to accept in a fictional family saga. The present Patton tells the whole story with compassion and balance but makes harsh judgments where they are called for. He also shows such literary skill as to make one hope this will not be his last book. Roland Green

Edition details

• Publisher: Crown
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0517590689
• ISBN 13: 9780517590683
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320