Indestructible

This is a riveting combat memoir of an Iwo Jima hero - the youngest marine to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. Here is an eloquent, plainspoken combat memoir of a young soldier who belongs in a class with World War II combat hero Audie Murphy. At the height of the Battle of Iwo Jima, Jack Lucas and three other Marines attacked a Japanese pillbox. When two enemy grenades landed in their midst, Private Lucas jumped on both grenades, just as they were exploding. His friends were saved but Lucas was torn apart. Miraculously, he survived - but barely. For this brave action seventeen-year-old Jack Lucas from North Carolina became the youngest soldier in the twentieth century, and the youngest Marine in history to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. In "Indestructible", we learn of the rocky road that led Jack Lucas to Iwo Jima - from his lying about his age to join the Marines to his going AWOL in order to join the action in the Pacific - and his arduous, frightening recovery following his heroic sacrifice.
Today, wherever Jack Lucas speaks crowds gather to honour him and pay tribute to Marine heritage and pride as well as to pay their respects to one of America's greatest generations. December 2006 sees the release of two major new films about Iwo Jima - both directed by Clint Eastwood. "Flags of Our Fathers" will tell the story of the battle from the American perspective, and "Lambs Before the Wind" (provisional title), from the viewpoint of the Japanese.