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Synopsis
The title, which hints at the poetry that breathes life into this true story of the Allied invasion of the beach at Anzio, Italy, in 1944, comes from a passage within the book told by a man assigned burial duty: Quickly, the mound of earth disappears. A friend has gone. He has drunk his vessel of sadness. His battle is stilled.”
Woodruff’s technique is to show that bloody struggle through the eyes of soldiers, statesmen, and civilians involved. Privileged viewers from afar, we see officers shooting pool before a major conference; we come close, peer into the thoughts of a corporal just before a bullet takes the top off his head; as if we were walking past, we stop for a moment to watch a poker game among enlisted men; we see an ambassador fretting over artifacts and men riding headlong into a German machine-gun nest.
In Woodruff’s war there are no human villains, only madness, an abstract insanity, a waste of such huge proportions as to sober even a giddy man. A war.
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About the Author
William Woodruff served with the First British Infantry Division during World War II and landed with his unit in the initial wave of the Anzio invasion. After the war he returned to Oxford University and, later, earned his doctorate of philosophy at Nottingham. He is now Graduate Research Professor in Economic History at the University of Florida.
Martin Blumenson was formerly Harold Keith Johnson Professor of Military History at the Army War College. He is the author of two volumes of The Patton Papers.
Review
Here in unvarnished but riveting truth, is the mixture of panic, danger, dirt, unthinking heroism, comradeship, despair and hope that make up the life of the fighting man in action.” George Riley, London Evening News
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- PublisherSouthern Illinois University Press
- Publication date1978
- ISBN 10 0809308754
- ISBN 13 9780809308750
- BindingHardcover
- Edition number1
- Number of pages200
- Rating
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Vessel of Sadness
Published by
Southern Illinois University [1978], Carbondale, IL, 1978
ISBN 10: 0809308754
ISBN 13: 9780809308750
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Ground Zero Books, Ltd., Silver Spring, MD, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: very good, poor. 1st U.S. Trade Edition. 23 cm, 190, DJ torn in rear with piece missing. Foreword by Martin Blumenson. A moving novel based on the author's experiences in a British infantry unitat Anzio. Originally privately published, the novel was then published in the United Kingdom; this is the First U.S. Trade publication. Seller Inventory # 25031
Quantity: 1 available
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Vessel of Sadness
Published by
Southern Illinois University Press, 1978
ISBN 10: 0809308754
ISBN 13: 9780809308750
Used
Hardcover
Seller: Irish Booksellers, Portland, ME, U.S.A.
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Condition: Good. SHIPS FROM USA. Used books have different signs of use and do not include supplemental materials such as CDs, Dvds, Access Codes, charts or any other extra material. All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. Dust Jackets are not guaranteed and when still present, they will have various degrees of tear and damage. All images are Stock Photos, not of the actual item. book. Seller Inventory # 40-0809308754-G
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Vessel Of Sadness.
ISBN 10: 0809308754
ISBN 13: 9780809308750
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1978. Southern Illinois University Press. Hardback. Book - VG. DJ - Fair/Good. Seller Inventory # 22071
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Vessel of Sadness
Published by
Southern Illinois University Press, 1978
ISBN 10: 0809308754
ISBN 13: 9780809308750
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Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Seller Inventory # Wizard0809308754
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