THE soldiers filed off the beach and into the twilight world of the jungle. The enemy lay concealed ahead, they could be sure. They followed an unlikely leader: a black-and-tan Doberman named Andy who betrayed no sense of the danger of the situation.
Some of the men bristled at the arrangement.
This was to save them all from enemy fire? The canine was a ruined show dog. To make matters worse, the platoon's backup was a German shepherd who months before had been roaming the streets of New York City with the three boys who owned him.
As they moved up the trail, they heard gunfire and artillery in the distance as the rest of the U.S. Second Marine Raider Battalion fought to secure the shoreline. It was 1943; the assault on Bougainville, a speck of land among the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, had just begun. Allied forces needed to capture a safe zone large enough to build an airfield for an eventual attack on the nearby island of New Britain, the final Japanese stronghold in the region. From there, the Allies would hop from island to island until they were within bombing range of Japan itself.
The campaign in the Pacific depended on Bougainville. For the Marines marching blindly into the dense, enemy-occupied jungle, the future depended on dogs who were never supposed to have been part of the war in the first place.
A Different Kind of Soldier
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest India dergisinin February 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest India dergisinin February 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Have Child, Will Travel
Bringing my kid on my around-the-world adventures helped me see her in new and unexpected ways
As Gods Among Us
A photographer explores the gamut of India’s ritual performers who embody deities as a form of worship
My stutter, Myself
If others don't notice my stutter, can I really call myself a stutterer?
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Modification
A Queensland mechanic customizes bikes so veterans can get riding again
I Tried It...Exercises to Relieve Tech Neck
I STARE AT MY phone for five hours a day.
The Upside of Getting Lost
I was in the woods with my family and we'd lost our way. My phone was dead. It was getting dark. How could this possibly be a good thing?
A MOTHER'S CONVICTION
AFTER ALL FOUR OF KATHLEEN FOLBIGG'S CHILDREN DIED IN INFANCY, A COURT FOUND HER GUILTY OF MURDER. TWENTY YEARS LATER, SCIENCE FINALLY UNCOVERED THE TRUTH
KITT THE COURAGEOUS K-9
Officer Bill Cushing needed a partner. His dog needed a purpose. Together, they rescued each other
Lite, Unplugged
Could you get through seven days without looking at a device? I tried—here’s what happened
GET A GREEN(ER) THUMB
Whether you love digging in the dirt, planting seeds and reaping the bounty that bursts forth, or find the whole idea of gardening intimidating, this spring offers the promise of a fresh start.