Annotation
**"Vividly drawn and emotionally gripping." --Daniel James Brown, #1 *New York Times* bestselling author of *The Boys in the Boat* One of the last unheralded heroic stories of World War II: the U-boat assault off the American coast against the men of the U.S. Merchant Marine who were supplying the European war, and one community's monumental contribution to that effort** Mathews County, Virginia, is a remote outpost on the Chesapeake Bay with little to offer except unspoiled scenery--but it sent one of the largest concentrations of sea captains and U.S. merchant mariners of any community in America to fight in World War II. *The Mathews Men* tells that heroic story through the experiences of one extraordinary family whose seven sons (and their neighbors), U.S. merchant mariners all, suddenly found themselves squarely in the cross-hairs of the U-boats bearing down on the coastal United States in 1942. From the late 1930s to 1945, virtually...
Praise for The Mathews Men
Vividly drawn and emotionally gripping, The Mathews Men shines a light on the mostly forgotten but astonishing role the U.S. Merchant Marine played in winning World War II. It brings back to life a breed of men who repeatedly risked all for their country. It chronicles the sagas of families that stoically endured heartrending losses. It honors a community that pulled together to support its sons as they set outagain and againon deadly seas. And it reminds us how much we owe to the legions of ordinary Americans who quite literally saved the civilized world in the 1940s.
Daniel James Brown, author of The Boys in the Boat
William Geroux has written a classic American tale, a gripping story of courageous everyday heroes facing death in World War II.
James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers
When a reporter who writes as elegantly as Geroux unearths such a dramatic and untold story, he must feel as if hes hit the mother lode. With The Mathews Men, Geroux gives us a rollicking read that plunges you into the middle of the ocean and seduces you into caring for the storys heroic seafarers. This is both a terrific and terrifying blow-by-blow of the actions of the sailors of the U.S. Merchant Marine as they dodged deadly U-boats during the course of World War II and who, as Lincoln put it, too often made the ultimate sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.
Bob Drury and Tom Clavin, co-authors of Halseys Typhoon and The Heart of Everything That Is
Often overlooked and unsung, the men of the U.S. Merchant Marine risked all against stealthy German U-boats whether within sight of East Coast cities or on the Arctic run to Murmansk. Mr. Geroux has superbly chronicled the gripping and deeply personal story of brothers in blood as well as in mission.
Walter R. Borneman, author of The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and KingThe Five-star Admirals Who Won the War at Sea
The German U-boat war against American merchant men was deadly and dramaticin World War II, the U.S. Merchant Marine had twice the fatality rate of the U.S. Navy. William Geroux has unearthed a fascinating tale of one small coastal town caught in the thick of the fight, and he tells it with a sharp reporters eye and a real feel for the heroic men who went down to the sea in ships.
Evan Thomas, author of Being Nixon and Sea of Thunder
William Gerouxs The Mathews Men harkens to the war heroics of Laura Hillenbrands Unbroken and the British detective drama Foyles War. A little-known story about the brutal sacrifices made by Merchant Marinesand the tiny bayside community they left behind in Mathews County, VirginiaGerouxs book is a gripping account of hard-drinking and even harder-working seamen, and a fresh take on World War II history. Loaded with offbeat characters trying to survive against astonishingly impossible odds, Geroux gives these unheralded heroes their belated due in an account that is as meticulously researched as it is even-handed and poignant.
Beth Macy, author of the New York Times bestseller Factory Man: How One Furniture Maker Battled Offshoring, Stayed Localand Helped Save an American Town
Poignant... A deep, compassionate group biography of these unsung heroes of the Merchant Marines.
Kirkus Reviews
Geroux combines the skills of a newsman and those of a scholar to tell the story of the vital and heroic role played by the U.S. Merchant Marines during World War II.
Publishers Weekly
The valor and contributions of the U.S. Merchant Marines to victory in World War II has seldom been acknowledged.... Geroux presents an unflinching, inspiring, and long delayed tribute to the sacrifice of these men.
Booklist (starred review)
A gripping tale of wartime heroics and an emotional family story, this is a must-read addition to World War II literature.
Library Journal
A gripping, nearly lost story of World War II (Hurry, the author was told, while gathering names of possible interviewees) and a moving portrayal of family and community. Geroux brings a reporters keen eye for detail and natural flair for storytelling to his account.... Readers experience both the terror at sea and the agonizing tension of families who waited for loved ones to return.
BookPage
Fascinating... The Mathews Men redresses historys long slight, and its well worth carrying to the beach this summer.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Absorbing and affecting... [Gerouxs] ability to compress an impressive amount of information into a story that moves quickly and holds the readers interest is on a par with that of best-selling author Bill Bryson.
The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk)
The men of Mathews County did their part and made their mark, daring the worst that nature and the Nazi navy could hurl against them. Though this modest volume concentrates on a handful of outstanding families, many more are well represented in such a stirring tale.
The Roanoke Times
[The U.S. merchant mariners] seldom-related contribution to the war effort, along with their courage and fortitude in the face of terrible losses, should be the stuff of legend, and Gerouxs fine book takes them a step in that direction.... One of the best books I have read [in] a very long time.... Dont miss this one.
Daily Herald (Provo)
Engrossing... At its heart, The Mathews Men is a story about duty, honor and sacrifice.... The Mathews Men gives credence to these World War II heroes who have been overlooked for far too long.
Virginia Living
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
William Geroux was a reporter for the
Richmond Times-Dispatch
for twenty-five years. He has also worked for Maersk, the largest container-shipping company in the world. He lives in Virginia Beach, Virginia. This is his first book.
www.williamgeroux.com
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First published in the United States of America by Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2016
Published in Penguin Books 2017
Copyright 2016 by William Geroux
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