Compare/Contrast

This year, I have read two non-fictional books; The Boys of Winter and Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell.   They have completely different plots, one being in the middle of war, and the other the Olympic Games.  Now, when I first read this question, I had no idea how I was going to find similarities, but then I sat down and thought about it.  It is actually quite simple, the answer I came up with: determination.  Both the U.S Olympic Hockey team was determined to win the gold medal game, and the author of the last book, George J. Trebonyak, was determined for his platoon and himself to make it out of war safe. 

10 Significant Facts of Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell

1.)  Trebonyak dropped out of high school.

2.)  Trebonyak got drafted into the U.S Military, for World War II

3.)  While in Normandy, Trebonyak was shot in the head with a German bullet. (his helmet stopped it)

4.)  After the battle in Normandy, he was one of only the few that survived in his platoon.

5.)  Trebonyak then joined up with two other platoons, and took over St. Malo, Brittany Peninsula, France.

6.)  His new platoon, met up with 3 more platoons, and circled up more than 20,000 Germans, in Loire Valley, Anger, France.

7.)  Trebonyak then entered Germany, which in the winter months is very cold and snowy.  His platoon lost many soldiers due to the weather.

8.)  While in Hurtgen Forest, Germany, Trebonyak’s platoon received the Presidential- Unit Citation, for advancing more than 3,000 yards in the bitter cold, against enemy artillery, mortar, and machine gun fire. 

9.)  On December 19, 1944, Trebonyak was shot in the leg, while his platoon was surrounded in Gurzenich, Germany. 

10.)  When he returns home, Trebonyak moves to Detroit, MI, and finds out that Newt died in an explosion in the same battle that he was wounded.

2 Main Characters?

Since the book is written in first person, the author, George J. Trebonyak, “Trek” is clearly one of the main characters along with Newt (the book doesn’t state his real name.)  Trebonyak and Newt are two completely different soldiers.  Trek is a warmhearted individual, and Newt, on the other hand, is coldhearted. In the book, when the Germans, or the enemies, surrendered, or were shot, Trek would stop shooting and get a medic.  However, Newt would continue shooting or just leave them there to die.  Trebonyak and Newt develop an unbreakable bond throughout the story, starting when they met at camp, and were placed in the same platoon.  

Setting of Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell

Two places mentioned in the book are, first, Camp “Attebury”, where he was trained to be an Army soldier, located in Southwest Indiana.  This was extremely significant to Trebonyak because he was nervous to become a soldier, but his sergeants and lieutenants essentially took the fear right out of him.  The second place mentioned was Normandy, which was Trebonyak’s first experience with war.   In this specific battle, he was tested of all his skills that he learned when he was at Camp “Attebury”, in Normandy, the author even got shot in the head.

Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell- What does that even mean?

    The title, Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell, certainly relates to this particular book because the author, George J. Trebonyak, calls home, “Heaven” and the war “Hell”.  This is substantial throughout the book because when he is describing his memories from home, they are all warmhearted, which reminds him of “Heaven”, and as you may know, war is not really welcoming, therefore, he relates war to “Hell”.

Best Chapter?

I think that Chapter 7, ‘Day by Day: A Soldier’s Diary’ is the greatest chapter in the book.  This chapter is very graphic in the author’s combat experiences.  The way the Trebonyak uses figurative language, it paints a clear, emotional picture on what war really looks like.  He expresses the way his generals, sergeants, and lieutenants are talking to his platoon and the way the enemies are talking to each other.  The chapter is very suspenseful because you don’t know what happens next.  At one point in the chapter, he gets shot in the head, but his helmet luckily stops it, only giving him a minor concussion.   Later in the chapter, the author’s platoon wins the battle at St. Lo.

George J. Trebonyak: Biography

George J. Trebonyak was born 1922, raised in southwestern Pennsylvania, and as an adult lived in Lincoln Park, Michigan.  Two of his three brothers were drafted into World War II before he was drafted at 22.  Trebonyak was first sent to Liverpool, and then, his platoon was moved to Normandy.  While in WWII, he received a Purple Heart for being wounded in battle.  The only book that he wrote was Memories of Heaven: Memories of Hell.