Ordinary Heroes is a narrative, nonfiction account of World War II as told through the perspective of veterans who served in various theatres of the conflict. Beginning with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and ending sometime after V-J Day, the book recounts the soldiers’ experiences at home and abroad, describing in detail what it was like to be at war. The stories are pulled from interviews conducted by the authors, which were verified and assembled into a timeline. Thus, the tales are presented chronologically as the war progresses.
Stylistically, Ordinary Heroes resembles a novel, as it is written from a third-person limited perspective and often forgoes sweeping historical commentary in favor of internal dialogue and introspection. Its focus lies squarely upon the shoulders of the characters and their personal experiences.
Of the sixty-plus men and women in the book, the majority are originally from – or currently reside in – Berks County, Pennsylvania, in the United States.
Famous quotes containing the words ordinary and/or heroes:
“An ordinary man will work every day for a year at shoveling dirt to support his body, or a family of bodies; but he is an extraordinary man who will work a whole day in a year for the support of his soul. Even the priests, men of God, so called, for the most part confess that they work for the support of the body.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Many heroes lived before Agamemnon; but all are unknown and unwept, extinguished in everlasting night, because they have no spirited chronicler.”
—Horace [Quintus Horatius Flaccus] (65 B.C.–8 B.C.)