Sgt York a Book Review of Sergeant

Sgt York

A Book Review of Sergeant York and the Great War

York is perhaps one of the most recognizable in modern American history. But perhaps few connect this name to the man's humble life and remarkable war-time accomplishments. The text attributed to Tom Skeyhill and published in 1998, Sergeant York and the Great War helps to bridge the gap between York's name, his legend and his life.

The book is an adaptation of York's famous autobiography, pieced together from the military legend's own diary during his draft and rise to prominence in World War I. In addition to reproducing York's journal in its entirety, Skeyhill splices in the historical background required to help the reader navigate York's story. Skeyhill's contributions serve as companion of explanations for the geographical, military and historical implications of York's reporting. This is complete with information about military strategy and photographs. These additions to York's diary offer the reader a combination of primary source material and secondary source material on key moments during World War I.

With respect to York's journal reporting, the primary source driving this book, there is a bluntness to the author's firsthand delivery that makes this a fairly unusual writing style. This distinctive feature is especially evident in York's descriptions of war-time experiences such as the scene on the battlefield. Here, York takes the reader directly through terse and vivid sketches of a battle, moment by moment. In the section where York describes his famous heroics against the Germans in France, for which he ultimately received a medal of honor, the author attempts to take the reader directly into the trenches with him. Here, York reports that "they was to give us a barrage. So the time came, and no barrage, and we had to start without one. So as we started over the top at 6:10 A.M., and the Germans was putting their machines guns to work all over the hill in front of us and on our left and right. So I was in support and I could see my pals getting picked off until it almost looked like there was none left. This was our first offensive battle in the Argonne. My battalion was one of the attacking battalions."

The manner in which York describes pushing through machine gun shells in gas masks conjures the hazy and confusing state of war. Where he tells of his battalion-mates getting picked off one by one until it felt that he was alone, the reader gets a sense of the terrifying isolation of war even if York never expresses this fear. This has an indelible effect on the reader, evoking a man of great courage in a highly chaotic setting. The literary effectiveness of this moment is heightened by the relatively unedited nature of York's writing. While Skeyhill contributes a historical and pictorial companion, he does not alter the primary source material. This helps to bring greater clarity to the position of the author. As York reports, he is a son of a family from the mountains of Tennessee. His father was a blacksmith and he, a soldier. And as York tells his story, with grammatical errors and a southern dialect intact, the reader can see a humble figure at the center of a story of iconic heroism. Key narratives such as that in which York's battalion captures 132 German machine gunners under harrowing conditions are intended to show a bravery that helped the U.S. side win the war.