From Kirkus Reviews
A stirring combat memoir by a WWII paratrooper of the elite 101st Airborne Division, the famed Screaming Eagles. Burgett (Currahee!, not reviewed) writes here of his experiences during the heroic stand of small US forces at the strategic Belgian town of Bastogne, crossroads of seven converging, passable roads in the heavy forests of the Ardennes that the Germans needed to capture to ensure the steady stream of men, machines, and supplies necessary for a quick victory in the Battle of the Bulge. Burgett had already survived the carnage of D-day and Arnhem to become one of the ``old men'' (aged 19) in the successful defense of Bastogne, an epic of courage, fortitude, and spirit that stopped the huge, powerful, armored German army short of the vital port of Antwerp. Surrounded by overwhelming enemy man- and fire-power, the outnumbered light infantry paratroopers plus small elements of the 10th Armored Division and field artillery battalions held the line for weeks. US forces paid a heavy cost in lives and wounded until relieved by General Patton's Third Army attacking the German flank. Burgett lost many of his buddies and original comrades in the bloody strugglehe himself was wounded three timesbut the troops never lost the fighting spirit of their heroic leader, Brigadier General Anthony C. (``Nuts'') McAuliffe, who refused to surrender in a very dark time. Burgett's spare prose captures the gritty reality of subzero temperatures; rough, snow-covered terrain; shortages of food, adequate clothes, heavy weapons, and ammunition. He gives the reader a sense of actually being there day to day with the squad and platoon, capturing the tension, excitement, and drama of their seemingly doomed situation, even though the reader may know the final outcome. Burgett bypasses the generals war-game vantage point to give us a front-line soldiers blood-and-guts eyewitness account of a decisive WWII battle. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Review
The Most Honest Book on Combat--Stephen E. Ambrose "As publisher of Seven Roads to Hell we are excited and proud to bring this fine book to the reading public. Bestselling historian Stephen E. Ambrose has given us the following comments: "I interview combat veterans, or read their manuscripts or books for a living. I've been doing this for thirty years. I've written a couple of books on the 101st Airborne in Bastogne. I've heard and read a lot a spine tingling stories. Donald Burgett's Seven Roads to Hell beats every one. His descriptions are on the mark, leaving the reader exhausted yet eager for more. Burgett can carry you through a day or a week in combat with vivid language, a gripping fear, a never-ending wish that his squad, platoon, company can somehow work their way through this one; a deep desire for food, even K rations, a yearning for sleep, praying for more ammunition, wondering if and when the doctors will arrive--and this is just for starters. The Battle of the Ardennes was the biggest of World War II, but Burgett takes us down to the individual level so that we can understand it. "Until now I thought E.B. Sledge's With the Old Breed was the most honest book on combat I had ever read. Burgett's account of his experiences at Bastogne surpasses everything. "It is a marvelous book." We hope you enjoy Seven Roads to Hell. --From the Publisher
I've read Umpteen first hand accounts of World War II. Mr Burgett's stand far out above the rest in their honest, plane written style. He adds no frills or plastic prose, he just describes as best he can what went on in his corner of the war. I cannot recommend these books highly enough. --Peter Brooks, peter.brooks@cosmopolitan-texti... (Manchester, England)
The third instalment in the series. It reads like a novel but is a true account of the author's experiences at Bastogne. His language is down to earth. His descriptions make you feel that you are there! You also feel a sense of pride and thanks for the soldiers who gave so much during the war. Don Burgett is a truly amazing man, as is anyone who has the guts to fight in a war. I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in WW2. --By Tony1962 "tony1962"
About the Author
Donald R. Burgett lives in Howell, Michigan. He is the author of CURRAHEE! and the soon to be publishedThe Road to Arnhem From the Author I was a trooper on the line, the one who pulled the trigger I was a paratrooper in the 101st from the first day of battle to the last. I told it how it was to meet the enemy in hand to hand combat in four different campaigns. Eleven of my original Co. survived the war, most of those are now dead. I had to tell our story.
