All the Gallant Men, Donald Stratton
All the Gallant Men, Donald Stratton
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All the Gallant Men
An American Sailor's Firsthand Account of Pearl Harbor

Bestseller

Author: Donald Stratton, Ken Gire

Narrator: Mike Ortego

Unabridged: 5 hr 55 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: HarperAudio

Published: 11/22/2016


Synopsis

The New York Times bestselling memoir of survival and heroism at Pearl Harbor“An unforgettable story of unfathomable courage.” —Reader’s DigestIn this, the first memoir by a USS Arizona sailor, Donald Stratton delivers an inspiring and unforgettable eyewitness account of the Pearl Harbor attack and his remarkable return to the fight. At 8:06 a.m. on December 7, 1941, Seaman First Class Donald Stratton was consumed by an inferno. A million pounds of explosives had detonated beneath his battle station aboard the USS Arizona, barely fifteen minutes into Japan’s surprise attack on American forces at Pearl Harbor. Near death and burned across two thirds of his body, Don, a nineteen-year-old Nebraskan who had been steeled by the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, summoned the will to haul himself hand over hand across a rope tethered to a neighboring vessel. Forty-five feet below, the harbor’s flaming, oil-slick water boiled with enemy bullets; all around him the world tore itself apart.In this extraordinary never-before-told eyewitness account of the Pearl Harbor attack—the only memoir ever written by a survivor of the USS Arizona—ninety-four-year-old veteran Donald Stratton finally shares his unforgettable personal tale of bravery and survival on December 7, 1941, his harrowing recovery, and his inspiring determination to return to the fight.Don and four other sailors made it safely across the same line that morning, a small miracle on a day that claimed the lives of 1,177 of their Arizona shipmates—approximately half the American fatalaties at Pearl Harbor. Sent to military hospitals for a year, Don refused doctors’ advice to amputate his limbs and battled to relearn how to walk. The U.S. Navy gave him a medical discharge, believing he would never again be fit for service, but Don had unfinished business. In June 1944, he sailed back into the teeth of the Pacific War on a destroyer, destined for combat in the crucial battles of Leyte Gulf, Luzon, and Okinawa, thus earning the distinction of having been present for the opening shots and the final major battle of America’s Second World War.As the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack approaches, Don, a great-grandfather of five and one of five living survivors of the Arizona, offers an unprecedentedly intimate reflection on the tragedy that drew America into the greatest armed conflict in history. All the Gallant Men is a book for the ages, one of the most remarkable—and remarkably inspiring—memoirs of any kind to appear in recent years

About Donald Stratton

Born in 1922, Donald Stratton grew up in Red Cloud, Nebraska. Upon graduating high school in 1940, he enlisted in the United States Navy, and reported for duty on the battleship USS Arizona. After more than a year of recuperation following the Pearl Harbor attacks, Stratton reenlisted in the Navy and was commissioned to the destroyer USS Stack. From 1944-45, he served in the Pacific at the naval campaigns for New Guinea, the Philippines, and Okinawa. He has been married to his wife, Velma, for sixty-six years. They live in Colorado Springs.

About Ken Gire

Ken Gire is the bestselling author of more than twenty books, including Windows of the Soul. He is a graduate of Texas Christian University and Dallas Theological Seminary.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Larry on May 02, 2023

I finished this book last night, the eve the 75th anniversary. I don't know where to begin a review of this book. So I think a small quote from page 109 will say it all. "Dear Lord, Lest I continue My complacent way, Help me to remember that somewhere, Somehow out there A man died for me today. As long as......more

Goodreads review by Rita McDowell on December 01, 2016

Wow! This is the greatest non fiction book that I have ever read. From the beginning to the end it will grab your heart and move you to tears. I had to read awhile and put it down to dry tears and then pick it up again only to dry tears again. This sailor allows you into the most precious part of hi......more

Goodreads review by Erika on December 03, 2016

What an amazing man and story. When I got to the end and found out he lives in Colorado Springs I emailed my dad (who also lives in the Springs). We are going to visit in August and I would like to buy this man a meal.......more

Goodreads review by Deacon Tom on February 15, 2022

Brilliant As a military officer, I stand and salute this book. It tells the story of the brave who gave their lives at Pearl Harbor. What is special is that it is told through the experiences of a survivor. May we be a people of peace and never attack or be attacked in the future.......more

Goodreads review by Tori on April 06, 2025

There are some books that we enjoy reading, and there are some books that make us a little better having read them. This is one of the latter. It was an honor to read Don Stratton's story. He spends enough time on the horrors of Pearl Harbor to share his involvement and snippets of the memories he h......more