To the Limit of Endurance: A Battalion of Marines in the Great War

COL Owen(USMC)'s latest effort is a must read for all those interested in the United States in World War I particularly the US Marine Corps readers.Expanding on his excellent work annotating a previous Marine Corps WW1 effort published by Texas A&M University Press, COL Owen's smooth writing style combined with exhaustive primary and secondary documentation research, makes for an "easy" read detailing the 2nd Battalion's grim and bloody campaigns during WW1 as part of one of the Marine Brigades attached to the U.S. Army's 2nd U.S. Infantry Division 'Indianheads" .."2nd to None!" The officers, non-commissioned officers, and enlisted men of the 2nd Battalion fought in most of the major battles of the last year of the war and its casualty rosters reflect the butcher's toll. Many of the veterans of these battles played major roles in future Marine Corps efforts in Nicauragua(sp?), Haiti, World War 2 storming the beaches of the South Pacific and the Korean War.The book contains the all-important maps for military history, an extensive bibliography/associated footnotes, and index as well as photographs.A highly recommended effort worth adding to one's WW1 library and USMC histories.

LtCol Peter Owen's book is a must for your PME collection as well as for anyone who likes to read about units of the Great War. Owen's book focuses on the 2/6 Marines which was part of the AEF's 2nd Division during WWI. Owen brilliantly tells the story about how the unit was a mixture of career Marines and men who joined up after the US declared war in 1917. Along with describing the personalities of the 2/6, Owen focuses on the operational effectiveness of the unit from its inception and how loses in combat negatively effected the performance of the unit. Owen also shows how the lack of training and poor doctrine was coupled with poor leadership decisions that led to very costly battles for the battalion. The book is easy to read and the chapters are well structured so the reader clearly understands the story Owen is relating to them. I plan to give this book to my friend who is going to USMC Command and Staff college!

This is a very historical detailed look at the history of second Battalion six marines during World War I. if you are a history buff looking to have a very detailed account of the events that unfolded during this time you will not regret reading this book. If you were just looking for a good book to read on vacation and don't want to be bored by textbook level historical detail then you might want to consider looking elsewhere this book can get dry at times but the author has clearly done his homework. Hope this review was helpful, let me know if you have any questions!

I just finished reading Colonel Owen's work. I could not put it down and finished it 8 nights. It is as well written military history of any unit I have read. It delves into the Operation and Tactical actions, mistakes, and successes of each engagement 2/6 experienced during the Great War. It also has many anecdotes from the common enlisted men that puts the human face on what in other books has been descripted in cold terse prose using just unit designations and reports.This book is a MUST READ if you want to understand the men who made up the United States Marine Corps during World War I, their experience, and the implications on Military tactics and doctrine of the Great War.

An exceptional job by Lieutenant Colonel Pete Owen on his research and writing by masterfully piecing together first hand accounts of the Marines of all ranks that fought at Belleau Wood and Soissons. A well organized, simple read - but one that provides any military leader many lessons learned that can be applied to today's global war on terror and the battlefields of Iraq. Any reader who enjoys historical or military writing will enjoy and learn something from this book. LtCol Pete Owen provides interesting facts and military traditions of that era that are probably not known by many current military personnel. This book makes the perfect gift for any newly promoted NCO or recent academy school graduate and has become a definite addition to my PME library. Highly recommended and congratulations to LtCol Pete Owen on a job well done. Semper Fi Mac.

I read this book because of my interest in the topic as well as reading about a new found interest in the what the US Marine Corp has been able to achieve in the past as well as in the present.

I ended up ordering 3 books. My husband was researching his grandfather for a college scholarship and low and behold we find his grandfather featured in the book. It was great discovery and we ended up sharing the book as a gift with his family members.

References to and quotes from Pvt. Levi Hemrick.