Battle Lines: The Last Good War
James Reasoner is known to many historical novel buffs as the author of one Virginia family’s Civil War experiences (Manassas, Shiloh, etc.). He applies much the same treatment in this first volume of a World War II series. Four Midwesterners (two brothers, their Jewish American friend, and a young woman) all enlist in the U.S. armed forces at the same time. The plucky, naïve, and patriotic quartet quickly find themselves caught up in the crises that ultimately bring an unprepared United States into the war.
In many ways the novel is a stereotypical rehashing of the familiar “coming of age in wartime” sagas that have been a staple of fiction for as long as most of us can remember. The main and secondary characters are fairly predictable, and the events of the period are hardly new. Still, such tales retain their popularity for a reason. An enjoyable book for those who are comfortable with the black and white world the author’s characters inhabit.