"Medic!" is the story of Robert L. Smith who, as a naïve nineteen-year-old, served as a combat medic in five of the major battles that contributed to the liberation of Europe during World War II. His story recalls human behavior ranging from the remarkable to the absurd in the midst of horror.
Fifty-three years later he and his wife made a pilgrimage from Omaha Beach, France to Germany, to sort out competing memories. Many veterans dream of going back in search of images, places, and people they knew in war, events that are quickly fading from history. "Medic!" is the result of one veteran having the opportunity to live out his dream.
My wife and I fulfilled a dream. It gave me the opportunity to collect and organize my memories into the mosaic of bits and pieces presented here, and to reaffirm my convictions about the absurdity of war, the importance of civility in all human conduct, and the importance of life, all life.
Review: "Smith's engaging, well-illustrated memoir recalls two journeys, one in 1944-1945, when he was in the U.S. Army breakout from Normandy to St. Lo to Paris and Germany, and the other in 1997-98, when with his wife, Fran, he returned to Europe. Gifted with a sense of humor... [Smith's] combat accounts should revive old memories for other veterans and inform younger readers about World War II realities."
-Booklist
"A magnificent account of a soldier in war."
-Major General Walter F. Pudlowski, Commanding General, 28th Infantry Division
"A brilliant piece of war reminiscence."
-J.E. Hall Williams, Professor Emeritus, London School of Economics
"The shared memories of millions of Americans."
-Robert M. Carter, Major General, U.S. Army, Ret., Professor of Behavioral Sciences & Leadership, U.S. Military Academy, West Point
"...has the smell of combat...A brilliant piece of war reminiscence...told with much insight and imagination."
-Eryl Hall Williams, Professor Emeritus
Bio: ROBERT L. SMITH is retired and lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and pets.
