"A collection of essays about US decorated military heroes from the Civil War through the war in Afghanistan." -- Provided by publisher.

About the medals /Lamar Underwood -- The brave men / William Manchester -- Hell in a very small place--Ia Drang: the battle that changed the war in Vietnam / Lt. Gen. Harold G. Moore (Ret.) and Joseph Galloway -- Into the fire: Polesti, the most fateful mission of World War II / Duane Schultz -- Sergeant York and his people / Sam K. Cowin -- Long rifle / Joe LeBleu -- Capturing a locomotive / William Pittenger -- The boys from Shangri-La: in which Jimmie Doolittle visits Tokyo uninvited / Lt. Col. Robert Barr Smith (Ret.) and Laurence J. Yadon -- Belleau Wood: "Retreat hell! We just got here!" / Alan Axelrod -- Black sheep and their "Pappy" / Col. Robert Barr Smith (Ret.) and Laurence J. Yadon -- The air war over the trenches / Eddie Rickenbacker -- December 7, 1941--eyewitness to infamy: official U.S. Navy report plus eyewitness account / edited by Paul Joseph Travers -- Legacy of valor: Iwo Jima and John Basilone / James H. Hallas -- The Rough Riders: San Juan Hill / Theodore Roosevelt -- Blood in the hills: the story of Khe Sanh, the most savage fight of the Vietnam War / Robert Maras and Charles W. Sasser.