The Mosquito Bowl: A Game of Life and Death in World War II
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- Create Date：2022-09-15 06:19:42
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Buzz Bissinger
- ISBN：0063242257
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Summary
"Buzz Bissinger's Friday Night Lights is an American classic。 With The Mosquito Bowl， he is back with a true story even more colorful and profound。 This book too is destined to become a classic。 I devoured it。" -- John Grisham
An extraordinary， untold story of the Second World War in the vein of Unbroken and The Boys in the Boat， from the author of Friday Night Lights and Three Nights in August。
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor， college football was at the height of its popularity。 As the nation geared up for total war， one branch of the service dominated the aspirations of college football stars: the United States Marine Corps。 Which is why， on Christmas Eve of 1944， when the 4th and 29th Marine regiments found themselves in the middle of the Pacific Ocean training for what would be the bloodiest battle of the war - the invasion of Okinawa--their ranks included one of the greatest pools of football talent ever assembled: Former All Americans， captains from Wisconsin and Brown and Notre Dame， and nearly twenty men who were either drafted or would ultimately play in the NFL。
When the trash-talking between the 4th and 29th over who had the better football team reached a fever pitch， it was decided: The two regiments would play each other in a football game as close to the real thing as you could get in the dirt and coral of Guadalcanal。 The bruising and bloody game that followed became known as "The Mosquito Bowl。"
Within a matter of months， 15 of the 65 players in "The Mosquito Bowl" would be killed at Okinawa， by far the largest number of American athletes ever to die in a single battle。 The Mosquito Bowl is the story of these brave and beautiful young men， those who survived and those who did not。 It is the story of the families and the landscape that shaped them。 It is a story of a far more innocent time in both college athletics and the life of the country， and of the loss of that innocence。
Writing with the style and rigor that won him a Pulitzer Prize and have made several of his books modern classics， Buzz Bissinger takes us from the playing fields of America's campuses where boys played at being Marines， to the final time they were allowed to still be boys on that field of dirt and coral， to the darkest and deadliest days that followed at Okinawa。
An extraordinary， untold story of the Second World War in the vein of Unbroken and The Boys in the Boat， from the author of Friday Night Lights and Three Nights in August。
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor， college football was at the height of its popularity。 As the nation geared up for total war， one branch of the service dominated the aspirations of college football stars: the United States Marine Corps。 Which is why， on Christmas Eve of 1944， when the 4th and 29th Marine regiments found themselves in the middle of the Pacific Ocean training for what would be the bloodiest battle of the war - the invasion of Okinawa--their ranks included one of the greatest pools of football talent ever assembled: Former All Americans， captains from Wisconsin and Brown and Notre Dame， and nearly twenty men who were either drafted or would ultimately play in the NFL。
When the trash-talking between the 4th and 29th over who had the better football team reached a fever pitch， it was decided: The two regiments would play each other in a football game as close to the real thing as you could get in the dirt and coral of Guadalcanal。 The bruising and bloody game that followed became known as "The Mosquito Bowl。"
Within a matter of months， 15 of the 65 players in "The Mosquito Bowl" would be killed at Okinawa， by far the largest number of American athletes ever to die in a single battle。 The Mosquito Bowl is the story of these brave and beautiful young men， those who survived and those who did not。 It is the story of the families and the landscape that shaped them。 It is a story of a far more innocent time in both college athletics and the life of the country， and of the loss of that innocence。
Writing with the style and rigor that won him a Pulitzer Prize and have made several of his books modern classics， Buzz Bissinger takes us from the playing fields of America's campuses where boys played at being Marines， to the final time they were allowed to still be boys on that field of dirt and coral， to the darkest and deadliest days that followed at Okinawa。
Reviews
Gordon Galbraith
，
A very insiteful read， a bit unorganized and I hope in future printing the editing will make it flow better。
Bruce Sembar
，
One of the best books I have read in a long time。 Maybe because my father was a WWII veteran and he rarely spoke about his experiences just saying， we did what had to be done。 The actual football game was a side note that tied together the characters the author brought to life。 Even though you knew the main characters were going to be among the 15 athletes/marines that were going to die， it was still sad to imagine that they were all young men with their whole lives in front of them that never g One of the best books I have read in a long time。 Maybe because my father was a WWII veteran and he rarely spoke about his experiences just saying， we did what had to be done。 The actual football game was a side note that tied together the characters the author brought to life。 Even though you knew the main characters were going to be among the 15 athletes/marines that were going to die， it was still sad to imagine that they were all young men with their whole lives in front of them that never got to live those lives。 I can't wait for this book to come out in September， I will buy it because I want to see the pictures that will be included。 。。。more
Kristen
，
I received this book in a Goodreads book giveaway。Though I would say football and war are two of my least favorite subjects， this book enthralled me the entire way through。 The author gives us a very personal look at the young men who went off to war， as well as their families and friends， which makes it much more than just a book about sports or WWII。 Not necessarily an uplifting read， but it definitely provides much to think about and honors those who gave their lives。 Very well written and en I received this book in a Goodreads book giveaway。Though I would say football and war are two of my least favorite subjects， this book enthralled me the entire way through。 The author gives us a very personal look at the young men who went off to war， as well as their families and friends， which makes it much more than just a book about sports or WWII。 Not necessarily an uplifting read， but it definitely provides much to think about and honors those who gave their lives。 Very well written and engaging！ 。。。more
Michael
，
***I was lucky enough to win （yay！） an uncorrected proof of this book and wanted to post an honest review***“The Mosquito Bowl: A Game of Life and Death in World War II” is the latest book from Mr。 Buzz Bissinger， author of the classic novel about Texas High School Football “Friday Night Lights”。 It centers on a group of young men fighting in the Pacific Theater of World War 2 who were premier football players at the college and professional levels。 To kill time and bring a sense of normalcy whi ***I was lucky enough to win （yay！） an uncorrected proof of this book and wanted to post an honest review***“The Mosquito Bowl: A Game of Life and Death in World War II” is the latest book from Mr。 Buzz Bissinger， author of the classic novel about Texas High School Football “Friday Night Lights”。 It centers on a group of young men fighting in the Pacific Theater of World War 2 who were premier football players at the college and professional levels。 To kill time and bring a sense of normalcy while preparing for the invasion of Okinawa， the 4th and 29th Marine regiments decide to play a football game against each other which was given the nickname of “The Mosquito Bowl”。 The author does a terrific job of diving into the backstory of a lot of the players， many of whom would lose their lives shortly after the big game。 You really feel like you know these men who had their whole lives ahead of them who then paid the ultimate sacrifice in service of their Country。 He also offers vivid details and descriptions of the battles and day to day hell that was the invasion of Okinawa。If there is a negative to this book， it is that the details of the game are only briefly glossed over。 So， if you were looking for in depth analysis of the game that was played， this might not be for you。 I have read many books on World War II and this one deserves to be in the collection of anyone who is interested in the topic。 。。。more
Lillian
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