''To the Last Man: A Novel of the First World War'' (2004) is a historical novel written by

Jeff Shaara Jeffrey M. "Jeff" Shaara (born February 21, 1952) is an American novelist and the son of Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Shaara. Biography Jeffrey Shaara was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and grew up in Tallahassee, Florida. He graduated f ...

about the experience of a number of combatants in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The book became a national best seller and received praise from people such as General

Tommy Franks Tommy Ray Franks (born 17 June 1945) is a retired general in the United States Army. His last army post was as the Commander of the United States Central Command, overseeing United States military operations in a 25-country region, including the ...

Plot summary

The novel is based on the arrival of

General John J. Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was a senior United States Army officer. He served most famously as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on the We ...

with American troops on the Western Front in 1917. Moving in a new direction from Shaara's previous novels, the book focuses not only on generals but also on the everyday American

doughboys Doughboy was a popular nickname for the American infantryman during World War I. Though the origins of the term are not certain, the nickname was still in use as of the early 1940s. Examples include the 1942 song "Johnny Doughboy Found a Rose in ...

, including the experiences of a character named Roscoe Temple, and a chapter about a new British recruit who refills the ranks, only to be killed during an attack on the German trenches several hours later. The book also profiles aviation aces such as Germany's

Manfred von Richthofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of ...

and America's

Raoul Lufbery Gervais Raoul Victor Lufbery (March 14, 1885 – May 19, 1918) was a French and American fighter pilot and flying ace in World War I. Because he served in both the French Air Force, and later the United States Army Air Service in World War I, ...

Awards

The novel was recognized with the

W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction is awarded annually by the American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and l ...

from the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...

in 2005.

References

2004 American novels American historical novels Novels set during World War I Novels by Jeffrey Shaara Fiction set in 1917 Ballantine Books books Cultural depictions of Manfred von Richthofen {{2000s-WWI-novel-stub