Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific

R.V. Burgin · Bill Marvel

Mar 2010 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

A remarkable eyewitness account of the most brutal combat of the Pacific War, from Peleliu to Okinawa, this is the true story of R.V. Burgin, the real-life World War II Marine Corps hero featured in HBO®'s The Pacific.

“Read his story and marvel at the man...and those like him.”—Tom Hanks

When a young Texan named R.V. Burgin joined the Marines 1942, he never imagined what was waiting for him a world away in the Pacific. There, amid steamy jungles, he encountered a ferocious and desperate enemy in the Japanese, engaging them in some of the most grueling and deadly fights of the war.
 
In this remarkable memoir, Burgin reveals his life as a special breed of Marine. Schooled by veterans who had endured the cauldron of Guadalcanal, Burgin’s company soon confronted snipers, repulsed jungle ambushes, encountered abandoned corpses of hara-kiri victims, and warded off howling banzai attacks as they island-hopped from one bloody battle to the next. In his two years at war, Burgin rose from a green private to a seasoned sergeant, fighting from New Britain through Peleliu and on to Okinawa, where he earned a Bronze Star for valor.
 
With unforgettable drama and an understated elegance, Burgin’s gripping narrative stands alongside those of classic Pacific chroniclers like Robert Leckie and Eugene Sledge—indeed, Burgin was even Sledge’s platoon sergeant. Here is a deeply moving account of World War II, bringing to life the hell that was the Pacific War.

Ratings and reviews

A gripping book that brings the reader into the Pacific island battles of WWII. The humor, humility, and humanity is there on every page. Makes me proud and humbled by those who laid down their lives for our country.

This was an awesome book it just goes to show what those men went through out there in the Pacific we should honor them. I say this because if they had lost the war in the Pacific our country would probably be under Japanese rule.

Fascinating book. As someone who has read hundreds of war books, this was one of my favorites. Puts you on the front lines of island fighting in WW2.

About the author

R.V. Burgin earned a Bronze Star for his actions in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. He was the platoon sergeant featured in Eugene Sledge's classic memoir, With the Old Breed, and was portrayed by Martin McCann in HBO's miniseries The Pacific. A native of Texas, he passed away in 2019 at the age of 96.