The Wild Blue: The Men and Boys Who Flew the B-24s Over Germany

Written by Stephen E. Ambrose

Narrated by Jeffrey DeMunn

Stephen E. Ambrose, acclaimed author of Band of Brothers and Undaunted Courage, carries us along in the crowded and dangerous B-24s as their crews fought to destroy the German war machine during World War II.

The young men who flew the B-24s over Germany in World War II fought against horrific odds, and, in The Wild Blue, Ambrose recounts their extraordinary heroism, skill, daring, and comradeship with vivid detail and affection.

Ambrose describes how the Army Air Forces recruited, trained, and selected the elite few who would undertake the most demanding and dangerous jobs in the war. These are the boys—turned pilots, bombardiers, navigators, and gunners of the B-24s—who suffered over fifty percent casualties.

With his remarkable gift for bringing alive the action and tension of combat, Ambrose carries us along in the crowded, uncomfortable, and dangerous B-24s as their crews fought to the death through thick black smoke and deadly flak to reach their targets and destroy the German war machine. Twenty-two-year-old George McGovern, who was to become a United States senator and a presidential candidate, flew thirty-five combat missions (all the Army would allow) and won the Distinguished Flying Cross. We meet him and his mates, his co-pilot killed in action, and crews of other planes. Many went down in flames.

As Band of Brothers and Citizen Soldiers portrayed the bravery and ultimate victory of the American soldiers from Normandy on to Germany, The Wild Blue illustrates the enormous contribution that these young men of the Army Air Forces made to the Allied victory.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Aug 1, 2001
• ISBN: 9780743555845

Stephen E. Ambrose

Stephen E. Ambrose was a renowned historian and acclaimed author of more than thirty books. Among his New York Times bestsellers are Nothing Like It in the World, Citizen Soldiers, Band of Brothers, D-Day - June 6, 1944, and Undaunted Courage. Dr. Ambrose was a retired Boyd Professor of History at the University of New Orleans and a contributing editor for the Quarterly Journal of Military History.

Reviews for The Wild Blue

[legan_18 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Audiobook. Was a little slow, but good information and kept us entertained during a long car ride

[tillywern · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although not an exhaustive historical reference of the air war over Europe during WWII, this book provides a very good glimpse into how average citizens became part of one of the greatest conflicts in human history. Although additional detail would have been helpful, one praises the balance between detail and pace found with Ambrose writing found here. The story moves quickly enough to engage the reader and does not get bogged down. Sometimes the sheer number of different people mentioned can be overwhelming.From a ratings perspective this book would probably be PG. There is some discussion about sexual activity but none of it overtly descriptive. Likewise there is also discussion about injuries suffered and death but it is handled well. Parents shouldn't have to worry about the content if their teen is reading this.

[wadezoe · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An excellent review of B-24 bomber operations from training to combat over the Third Riech. It is also a biography of George McGovern's war years as a B-24 pilot. It is an excellent listen for aviation enthusiasts, World War II readers and pilots.

[lamour_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There are many books about flying B-17's over Europe but fewer about what it was like to fly the B-24. Here Ambrose has gathered many stories from the men who flew them from airfields in Italy to targets over Eastern Europe concentrating on the crew of George McGovern, the 1972 Presidential candidate. As well Ambrose takes us through the adventures experienced during training in the US. There is much humour but also a great deal of terror. He also describes the bomber with all its flaws and does compare it to its more famous rival, the B-17. More B-24's were built than any other US bomber and they could carry a bigger payload farther as well.

[meegeekai · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a great book and a nice match for Bradley's Flyboys as it focuses more on the strategic bombing in Europe. I just like the way Ambrose told a story. This is not his best but a great work, just the same.

[wmchamberlain · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this book on audio and it was fantastic. Many times writers have trouble writing for out loud reading, but Stephen Ambrose does and excellent job. If you are interested in WWII or in flying I would suggest you read this book.

[choccy_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the second Ambrose's book I've read since Band of Brothers. It tells about the experiences of B-24 bomber crews in World War II; 741st Squadron, 455th Bomb Group, 15th Air Force, to be exact. The stories are from the beginning, i.e. the crews? background, their vigorous training (the high requirements resulted in many ?washouts?), the first mission, until when the war?s over.Thus, it?s quite an extensive piece that offers lots of interesting details. If you love aircrafts (and aerial warfare), you?ll consider this book as a classic.Ambrose fulfilled my expectation as a war historian, the story just flows with such a flair that makes you feel like want to be in that plane. B-24, or Liberator, is one of the five bombers utilized by the US Army during the war. It requires nine crew members: pilot, co-pilot, navigator/bombardier, flight engineer, radio operator, gunners (nose, waist, tail and ball turret). One can only imagine how heavy and cramped that bomber was. Over 18,000 B-24s were built, more than any other US planes. But they destroyed German refineries, marshalling yards, factories, air fields, thus destroying German?s ability to make war.The first impression I?ve got after finishing this book is that the airmen in World War II suffered less than the infantry soldiers. Yes, the plane is too cramped, they faced those devastating flaks, penetrating cold in 20,000 feet height, but still, they got to sleep in tents with real beds, not in foxholes, helplessly waiting for enemy?s shells and mortars to blast them to oblivion. The Army Air Force also applied a not-so-strict segregation between officers and enlisted men, as well as behaviors. No chickenshits (army term for jack-ass officers) in combats either; a different case with the infantry. Last but not least, as bomber crews they did not have to see the faces of enemy and civilians they killed.My favorite part of the book is the chapter telling about the P-51 (Mustang) fighter pilots from the 99th Fighter Squadron, or known as the Tuskegee Airmen. They were African Americans. The US Army in World War II still practiced discrimination, but those pilots did not discriminate, as admitted by the bomber crews. The P-51 pilots are honored for their bravery, discipline and dedication in their main role to protect the bombers.One must not forget that airplane is the most destructive tool in this war. Not only hundreds of thousands people (including civilians) were killed, but hundreds of historical buildings, residences, infrastructures were destroyed. However, one must not also forget that aerial warfare saved the Western civilization. We can only hope that the currently-used smart bombs can improve their accuracy.

[rustyboone · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It gives a good overview of the B-24's significance and its contributions to the war in Europe, as well as a moving glimpse into the lives and stories of specific men and crews. The book centers on George McGovern, whose experiences as a bomber pilot were remarkable for a reader yet not unusual among his fellows.

[jamespurcell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Outstanding book about young men going to war

[jcbrunner · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A rather weak and unworthy effort by Stephen Ambrose, barely comparable to his other books. This book suffers from truthiness and a lack of focus. Ambrose is invested in propagating the Greatest Generation myth. By omission and commission, he offers a wrong picture of history. True, the WWII soldiers were young boys - but so were the soldiers in any other war from the boy colonel in the US Civil War to the baby-faced tankers in the Iraq War. Ambrose's exceptional claim simply is no such thing. The same is true about the mix of the boys from coast to coast. Read any US Civil War account to get a similar picture. Ambrose also paints a too rosy picture about US officers. Can you really hold up Joseph "Catch 22" Heller's claim that there were no bad officers with a straight face? These are minor points. The major distortion, Ambrose engages in, is propagating the effectiveness of strategic bombing. The bombs destroyed many lives and much property, but it didn't cripple the German war engine. Ambrose should have realized this, when he describes the effects on the air raids on Ploesti: Only the Soviet ground forces deprived the Germans of those crucial fuel supplies. The real value of the US airforce was its tactical ground support as flying artillery. This message clashes with Ambrose's intent on glorifying the strategic bomber pilots.Ambrose further weakens his book by choosing George McGovern as its main protagonist. Through no fault of his own, McGovern enters active war only in the final months of 1944, when the war in Europe was all but over. Whether McGovern and his crew dropped their bombs or not on target, had no effect on the outcome of the war. Furthermore, McGovern's squadron was stationed in Italy, thus in a sideshow theater of war.Published in 2001 for 26 USD, this book was bought remaindered for 5.34 USD in a Borders store in leafy Scarsdale, NY during 2003, crossed the Atlantic and ended up in a Zurich, Switzerland used bookstore where I bought it in 2010 for 3.50 CHF/3.75 USD. After the quick plunge, the book manages to tenaciously hold on to its remaining value.

[seriousgrace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The prologue to Wild Blue illustrates the constraints to flying a B-24. The very first sentence sets the stage, "The B-24 was built like a 1930s Mack Truck, except that it had an aluminum skin that could be cut with a knife" (p 21). Ambrose goes on to describe the lack of windshield wipers, heat, bathrooms, pressurization, kitchen facilities, or even room to move. Sometimes the airmen are too large for their assigned compartments and had to remove their parachutes in order to fit. Immediately upon reading this you sense the difficulties these airmen faced just flying these planes - never mind the additional dangers of flak, combat, even the weather. Chapter One introduces you to the men (in some most cases, mere boys) responsible for flying these dangerous machines. While Ambrose lists many different individuals, his main focus is on the pilots, bombardiers, navigators, radio operators and gunners. With the help of interviews with veterans like George McGovern, Ambrose takes you into the cockpit of every "Dakota Queen" McGovern flew. Subsequent chapters of Wild Blue take us through training, combat missions, D-Day, and the final mission of April 1945. There is a semi-Cinderella happy ending to Wild Blue that was almost too good to be true, but I believed it.

[satyridae · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Interesting and terrifying and edifying in many spots but draggy throughout. It's mostly the story of George McGovern's WWII, and I learned a lot. It's a good read, just not a gripping one- except where it's so scary and you are over enemy territory in the middle of the night and lose your engine.

[stillnotalice · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My dad was an nose gunner in a B-24 in WW2. This gave me a good idea of what he experienced as a flyer.