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Crossen Combat ChroniclesBiography of a WWII Artilleryman - by Chip HeylRead What Others Have to Say...
Sue (Crossen) McCreery, contributing author of the Crossen Combat Chronicles, alerted me to the publication of the book and the possibility of an author visit and autographing session. Since I started the "Meet the Author" series a year ago, we had the largest crowd ever attend and listen to Richard (Chip) Heyl's presentation. Many of the authors just talk about their works but Chip wowed the audience with an animated slideshow of Part III of the book (The Luzon Campaign). The overlays of the battles and the progress of the march on Manila showed impressive planning and editing. The slideshow is a work of art besides the excellent writing, researching and illustrating of the book focusing on Lt. Colonel John Crossen and the 135th Field Artillery Battalion in World War II. Those who know about the brave World War I and II contributions of the 37th Infantry Division, comprised of Ohio National Guard units and called the Buckeye Division, acknowledge that Chip Heyl has filled in a missing piece of the war in the Southwestern Pacific theatre. There are many WWII accounts from generals' viewpoint but few from an artilleryman's vantage point. My patrons who are veterans who have read the Crossen Combat Chronicles tell me this is one of the best histories they have read. If you want an impressive presenter for your organization, Chip Heyl offers a winning program! I am glad our library has a hardcopy and a CD copy to lend to military history buffs and non-fiction readers. Check out Leaning Pine Publishing (http://www.LeaningPinePublishing.com) on the Internet for other works by the author.
His father, Pat, was the commanding officer of Company G, 145th Infantry Regiment of the 37th Infantry Division and the most decorated serviceman from Huron County in WWII. Pat McLaughlin is a member of the Ohio Military Hall-of- Fame. The Crossen Combat Chronicles text and Animated Slideshow gives a detailed account of the 37th Infantry Division (Buckeye Division, as all members were originally from Ohio) preparation and deployment to the Southwest Pacific Theatre in WWII. It continues with the New Georgian, Bougainville, and Luzon Campaigns. The text relates these vital activities to the larger war effort, in a way that only 20/20 hindsight could allow. The text has new full color terrain maps, made from WWII black and white maps used by the 37th ID during their historic struggles. The intense fighting by the infantrymen, including my father, who was highly decorated, is described, as well as the quality of the field medical facilities so often used by my father. Although the book focuses on Lieutenant Colonel John R. Crossen, the Battalion Commander of the 135th Field Artillery Battalion-the artillery most often assigned to my father’s 145th Infantry Regiment, it provides an overview of the Buckeye Division WWII activities never before published. Having researched my father’s activities for years, I found the Crossen Combat Chronicles an informative and good read!
I have known Chip since the mid-1990s and he has always been on the leading edge of the Adjunct Professors using PowerPoint for teaching their classes on the campus. At first he started with slideshows, but soon was using animation, and more recently voice clips to drastically reduce the amount of reading in his presentations. His preparation has helped his students understand the difficult concepts of the effects of striking a golf ball with a variety of clubs, and how the spinning golf ball behaves under various wind conditions. When he asked me and others in the lab to review the Crossen Combat Chronicles Animated Slideshow, I expected a good presentation. Both my husband and I have both seen the slideshow and read the Crossen Combat Chronicles text. They supplement each other very well and I have no doubt that Chip incorporated the relevant critiques from the NOVA staff. On behalf of myself, and my NOVA colleagues, I feel good about recommending the Crossen Combat Chronicles book and Animated Slideshow to anyone interested in World War II, and specifically the Pacific Theatre.
I participated in the review of both the Crossen Combat Chronicles text and the PowerPoint Animated Slideshow. Over the last 30-some years Chip and I have discussed all of the wars in which the United States was a combatant, sharing historical videos and texts, and discuss-ing the relative positions of the authors. I enjoyed my involvement in these Crossen Combat Chronicles efforts and believe that Chip took my critiques seriously, and converted them into improvements for his product. Particularly useful were the color coded maps in the text, with the corresponding avenues of approach indicated for the various military combatants in the New Georgia, Bougainville, and Luzon Campaigns. Both the text and animated graphics depict the battles in the method best suited to each medium for viewer understanding. I encouraged Chip to provide a historical balance between the relative areas of war-fighting: supply and logistics; planning and operations; discipline and training; as well as the period technology and the human impact and trauma. I think he accomplished this goal very well. The Crossen Combat Chronicles provides good insight to the difficult jungle fighting in the Solomon Islands and urban fighting on Luzon. A must for amateur historians.
War is horrible, but necessary to protect our freedom and way of life. It takes brave young men in the prime of their lives and puts them into a situation of death, mutilation, and fear. No one returns from combat without mental scars. Some are able to cope, but many seek alcohol and other drugs to erase the guilt and memories of war that are incomprehensible to non-military personnel. LtCol. John Crossen left his family, job, and way of life to answer the call of his nation. In reading Crossen Combat Chronicles it is apparent to me that he had "the right stuff" to command. The ability to lead and mold young men into an effective fighting force under the difficult circumstances of war requires a dedicated and exceptional leader. The Crossen Combat Chronicles provides an understanding view of the emotions felt both by the family and warrior. |
