Task Force Hogan: The World War II Tank Battalion That Spearheaded the Liberation of Europe
Description
A fourth-generation soldier tells the story of his father’s tank battalion, the “Spearhead,” that selflessly led the charge on the front lines from Normandy into Germany—against impossible odds, technologically superior weaponry, and a fanatical enemy on its home turf—and the heroes whose sacrifice won World War II.
At twenty-eight, Sam Hogan is one of the youngest lieutenant colonels in the US Army. The West Point graduate from Texas stands in the commander’s hatch of his Sherman tank, behind him a steel wedge of seventeen other Shermans of his tank battalion. Two weeks after the now-infamous D-Day landings, Sam is preparing to give the order to advance into the German defenses that enclose the Normandy beachheads. Ahead of Sam lies seemingly impossible odds for survival: technologically superior Nazi tanks, camouflaged anti-tank guns, and infantry armed with new anti-tank rockets. But Sam has prepared for this moment for the past seven years. With a guttural call to move out accompanied by diesel fumes and the squeak of tank treads, Sam and his men begin their long journey to liberate Europe—a journey from which many of them would not return.
So begins the story of Sam Hogan and his colorful band of tanker heroes of the Third Armored Division—the “Spearhead”—as they battle on the front lines of some of the war’s toughest fights, from Normandy to the Elbe to the Battle of the Bulge. The soldiers of Task Force Hogan come from all walks of life. There are cooks, tankers, infantrymen, salty old sergeants, and wet-behind-the-ears lieutenants. In common, they have a sense of duty to each other and their country, and the struggle against the most sinister enemy modern history has ever produced.
In Task Force Hogan, the story of Sam and his band of heroes comes to life through the writing of his son, Will Hogan—aided by never-before-seen letters, military dispatches, journal entries, and interviews with surviving family of the Task Force. These were the soldiers at the tip of the spear, brave enough to lead the charge and fight against insurmountable odds, and often paying the ultimate price, while liberating French villages and concentration camps as they rolled towards Germany to ultimately win the war. In the pages of this book, Will Hogan finally gives these unsung soldiers the voice and memorial that they all deserve.
Praise for Task Force Hogan: The World War II Tank Battalion That Spearheaded the Liberation of Europe
"[An] incredible, thrilling narrative of armored, combined-arms WWII. This chronicle brings the reader right into the horrors of combat, the fatigue the men felt, the mud, the fear, and the constant awareness of the law of averages that chases every soldier on the battlefield. . . . cannot be recommended strongly enough for anyone interested in the full, harrowing details of the crucial blood-and-guts grind of America’s armored spearhead into Nazi Germany." — Booklist
"[A] capable nuts-and-bolts, often gruesome description of small-unit action that undoubtedly resembles what actually occurred. Readers will learn the smell, sound, operation, and defects of the Sherman tank; the makeup, command structure, and tactics of an American armored division; and personal stories of scores of men under and above Sam Hogan." — Kirkus Reviews
“Powerful, needful, detailed, and moving, Task Force Hogan is a must-read for fans of World War II nonfiction. The author is a well-credentialed Army veteran who writes with a skillful hand. His respect for the subject—his father and his tank battalion—clearly shines through.” — Marcus Brotherton, New York Times bestselling author of Shifty’s War and A Bright and Blinding Sun
"Former U.S. Army officer and fourth-generation soldier [William R.] Hogan debuts with a fast-paced and immersive chronicle of the wartime exploits of his father, Samuel Hogan, who fought in WWII as a member of the Third Armored Division. . . . Hogan captures the constant danger, uncertainty, and stress of combat. The result is an action-packed tribute to a father from his son." — Publishers Weekly
“Wars are won by bravery, smarts, and determination. In the toughest battles of World War II—Normandy, the Siegfried Line, the Bulge, the Rhine crossing, and beyond—one famous outfit set the standard for all the rest. Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 33rd Armored Regiment reflected the inspiration and perspiration of their tough, unrelenting commander: Lieutenant Colonel Sam Hogan. This is their story, told as only Sam Hogan’s son can tell it. A combat veteran himself, Will Hogan takes us into the heart of his father’s war. Ride with Task Force Hogan!” — Daniel P. Bolger, author of The Panzer Killers and Lieutenant General, US Army (retired)
“For so many of us, our fathers and grandfathers never spoke about their service during the deadliest conflict in human history. Gratefully, William Hogan absorbed the fabled exploits of his father's gallantry with the Third Armored Division and seeks to share them now. An energetic tale of the Allied spearhead across Western Europe, Task Force Hogan stands as a vivid exemplar of family history as a meaningful narrative of men at war.” — Jared Frederick, author of Dispatches of D-Day and Fierce Valor
