John Lewis Barkley

Originally published in 1930 under the odd title, "No Hard Feelings," SCARLET FIELDS has a rather checkered and unsuccessful history. Author John Lewis Barkley was a farm boy from Missouri, not a professional writer, so initially enlisted a friend to ghost write his story, based upon his personal notes. Later a team of editors at Cosmopolitan Books rewrote the book again. So I couldn't help but wonder about the authenticity of the "voice" in the first person narrator here. The final version does work pretty well, and seems genuine, and yet its straightforward method of "I did this, and then I did that," or "We moved forward and crossed the river," etc. begins to wear thin after while. What should be a very exciting story becomes tedious. Barkley's bravery is unquestionable, but his eventual apparent enthusiasm for the killing makes him hard to like as a character.

I was reminded often here of Audie Murphy's bestselling WWII memoir, TO HELL AND BACK, except I LIKED Murphy. Yes, Barkley was awarded the Medal of Honor and numerous other decorations for his bravery, risks taken and injuries suffered, but, all things considered, and despite all the professional rewrites and editing, SCARLET FIELDS is just not a very engaging read. Recommended, but probably only for serious war lit buffs or historians.

- Tim Bazzett, author of the memoir, BOOKLOVER… (mehr)