Damn Lucky, Kevin Maurer
Damn Lucky, Kevin Maurer
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Damn Lucky
One Man's Courage During the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History

Author: Kevin Maurer

Narrator: Holter Graham, John Luckadoo

Unabridged: 8 hr 20 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/19/2022


Synopsis

From Kevin Maurer—the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning coauthor of No Easy Day—comes the true story of a World War II bomber pilot who survived twenty-five missions in Damn Lucky, “an epic, thrillingly written, utterly immersive account of a very lucky, incredible survivor of the war in the skies to defeat Hitler” (New York Times bestselling author Alex Kershaw).

“We were young citizen-soldiers, terribly naive and gullible about what we would be confronted with in the air war over Europe and the profound effect it would have upon every fiber of our being for the rest of our lives. We were all afraid, but it was beyond our power to quit. We volunteered for the service and, once trained and overseas, felt we had no choice but to fulfill the mission assigned. My hope is that this book honors the men with whom I served by telling the truth about what it took to climb into the cold blue and fight for our lives over and over again.”
—John “Lucky” Luckadoo, Major, USAF (Ret.) 100th Bomb Group (H)

Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was a world away from John Luckadoo’s hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. But when the Japanese attacked the American naval base on December 7, 1941, he didn’t hesitate to join the military. Trained as a pilot with the United States Air Force, Second Lieutenant Luckadoo was assigned to the 100th Bomb Group stationed in Thorpe Abbotts, England. Between June and October 1943, he flew B-17 Flying Fortresses over France and Germany on bombing runs devised to destroy the Nazi war machine.

With a shrapnel torn Bible in his flight jacket pocket and his girlfriend’s silk stocking around his neck like a scarf as talismans, Luckadoo piloted through Luftwaffe machine-gun fire and antiaircraft flak while enduring subzero temperatures to complete twenty-five missions and his combat service. The average bomber crew rarely survived after eight to twelve missions. Knowing far too many airmen who wouldn’t be returning home, Luckadoo closed off his emotions and focused on his tasks to finish his tour of duty one moment at a time, realizing his success was more about being lucky than being skilled.

Drawn from Luckadoo’s firsthand accounts, acclaimed war correspondent Kevin Maurer shares his extraordinary tale from war to peacetime, uncovering astonishing feats of bravery during the bloodiest military campaign in aviation history, and presenting an incredible portrait of a young man’s coming-of-age during the world’s most devastating war.

This program includes a bonus conversation between John "Lucky" Luckadoo and the author.

About Kevin Maurer

KEVIN MAURER is an award-winning journalist and three-time New York Times bestselling co-author of No Easy Day, No Hero and American Radical among others. For the last eleven years, Maurer has also worked as a freelance writer covering war, politics and general interest stories. His writing has been published in GQ, Men's Journal, The Daily Beast, The Washington Post, and numerous other publications.

About Holter Graham

Holter Graham, winner of AudioFile’s 2008 Best Voice in Science Fiction & Fantasy for Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Acheron, is a stage, television, and screen actor. He has recorded numerous audiobooks, including much of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s bestselling Dark-Hunter series. The winner of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards, he has also read works by Scott Turow, Dean Koontz, C. J. Box, and Stephen Frey.  His film credits include Fly Away Home, Maximum Overdrive, Hairspray, and The Diversion, a short film which he acted in and produced. On television, he has appeared in Army Wives, Damages, As The World Turns, Rescue Me, Law & Order and New York Undercover. He received a B.A. from Skidmore College and an M.F.A. from Vermont College.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jim on September 27, 2021

Despite what they say, they are/were “The Greatest Generation”. This is the story of another one of those heroes. Thank goodness there are writers still digging out their stories so that “we may never forget” their sacrifices and heroism. This book is DAMN LUCKY by author KEVIN MAURER. The subject......more

Goodreads review by DonnaDavis on May 26, 2022

John “Lucky” Luckadoo was a bomber pilot in World War II in the most dangerous period of the European theater, and he survived twenty-five bombing runs, which was unusual. This is his story, told to us by the skilled wordsmith Kevin Maurer, and narrated by Holter Graham and Luckadoo himself. My than......more

Goodreads review by Jennifer on September 26, 2021

This was a book about the life of one bomber pilot during World War Two. It is gritty and describes many details of air combat, as well as the day to day lives of the airmen. I feel like I got to know “Lucky” Luckadoo and was given a small taste of what he experienced. There were times when I was alm......more

Goodreads review by Porter on June 12, 2022

My Grandfather served with the 2nd Bombadier Group during WWII and continued to serve in the Air Force until the early 70s. It wasn't until a few years before his death that he started to open up about his experiences during the war. Finding books like this is interesting because it fills in some of......more

Goodreads review by Julie on May 01, 2022

John "Lucky" Luckadoo was a bomber pilot in WWII. He dropped bombs over Germany under heavy fire, protected by his Bible and his girlfriend's silk stocking he wore around his neck like a scarf. He completed 25 missions and returned home after the war. Kevin Maurer does such a great job writing about......more