Lines of Battle

Arranged in chronological order, this collection of some 100 letters from soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines offers a very personal view of World War II and a sense of immediacy that is remarkable. The correspondence ranges from a GI's final message, written from Bataan, to a private's advice to his unexpectedly drafted father; from a general's letter of condolence to journalist Ernie Pyle's widow to a marine's revelation to his mother that he lost a leg in battle; from an airman's description of the mercy-killing of a comrade trapped in a burning plane to a soldier's reaction to the news of the A-bombings. Several letters are by well-known figures (William Halsey, George Patton, John Kennedy, among them), but these obviously were included for the eloquence of emotion expressed rather than because of the writer's renown. Tapert is the author of Despatchesstet from the Heart. Photos. (May 12)