Helmet for My Pillow

"Helmet for My Pillow" is the personal narrative written by World War II United States Marine Corps veteran, author and military historian Robert Leckie. First published in 1957, the story begins with Leckie enlisting in the United States Marines shortly after the 1941 Attack on Pearl Harbor. In 2007, it was announced that "Helmet for my Pillow" would be the basis of the new HBO mini-series "The Pacific".Abbruzzese 2007.] Martindale 2007.]

Story

Beginning with boot camp in Parris Island, South Carolina, the story follows Leckie through basic training and then to New River, North Carolina where he is briefly stationed, and follows him to the Pacific.

Leckie is assigned to the 1st Marine Division and is deployed to Guadalcanal, northern Australia, New Guinea, Cape Gloucester, and the islands of the South Pacific before being evacuated with combat injuries from the island of Pelelieu. "Helmet for My Pillow" is told from an enlisted man's point of view; a contemporary book jacket stated the book was about "the booze, the brawling, the loving on 62-hour liberty, the courageous fighting and dying in combat as the U.S. Marines slugged it out, inch by inch, across the Pacific." [Leckie, Robert, "Helmet For My Pillow", Bantam (1979), ISBN 0553282654]

Notes

References

*cite web|accessdate=2007-12-21
url=http://orient.bowdoin.edu/orient/article.php?date=2007-02-09&section=4&id=2
title=Miniseries 'The Pacific War' to feature alum war hero
date=February 9, 2007
author=Abbruzzese, Kelsey
work=The Bowdoin Orient

*cite web
url=http://smallscreen.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1335209.php/Band_of_Brothers_producers_cast_The_Pacific_series_on_HBO
accessdate = 2007-12-22
title = 'Band of Brothers' producers cast 'The Pacific' series on HBO
author = Martindale, Stone
date = July 26, 2007
publisher = Monsters & Critics

*cite interview
accessdate = 2007-12-22
url = http://www.booknotes.org/Transcript/?ProgramID=1267
last = Leckie
first = Robert
interviewer = Brian Lamb
title = Booknotes: 'The Last Battle of World War II' by Robert Leckie
program = C-SPAN
date = September 3, 1995

*cite web
accessdate = 2007-12-22
url = http://www.bestprices.com/cgi-bin/vlink/book_person?id=ZujRMsAE&p_id=182150&view=bio
title = Leckie, Robert — Books and Biography
publisher = All Media Guide LLC