Nearly 100 years ago, on October 4, 1918, on a muddy, poison gas-soaked
hillside in France, the U.S. 26th Infantry Regiment jumped-off amidst a
hail of shell fire and machine-gun fire to begin the final push to end
World War I. For the next 39 days, with little respite, the regiment
fought desperately against a determined, well-armed foe. This is the
story of a single regiment in a successful, highly acclaimed "Regular
Army" division, during the greatest American battle to date. This is not
a dry recitation of facts, but an in-depth examination of a single
regiment that allows the reader to appreciate the intricacies of
small-unit action and the problems associated with leading platoons,
companies, and battalions in battle during the Great War, while at the
same time depicting the human drama associated with the terrible carnage