Henry Giles

My father builds log cabins. So, one of my recent gifts to him was an assortment of “old” books with a log cabin theme. When this book arrived in my mailbox, I thought, ah-hmm, it’s ~already~ used, anyway … so I read it before gifting it.

It was a thoroughly captivating little story. Part family history, part story of a house, part local flavor. On LT’s author pages, this book is attributed to Henry Giles, and though they were co-authors, most of the chapters were written by Janice. show more She has a lovely way of writing; folksy and warm. You finish the book feeling like part of the family.

It has been months since I finished the book, and … no longer have it on hand … so can’t refresh my memory for a more complete review. Bottom line, though, an enjoyable book; I recommend it.

And happy birthday, Papa! show less

Gleaned from his personal journal and letter sent to home, this book documents the campaigns in NW Europe experienced by the 291st Engineer Combat Battalion, specifically A Company.
The 291st was "those damned engineers" that figured heavily in delaying and stopping Joachim Peiper. Giles was actually in a Repple Depple, trying to get back to the unit when Wacht am Rhein erupted, so he missed a good bit of the fighting in December. He spent that part of the book showing the huge inadequacies show more of the replacement system during the war. He was able to use first hand accounts from his comrades to tell the story of the defense of the Ambleve and other rivers,

Giles was evacuated with a badly infected ear in October and was released to return to his unit a week or two later. It was not until late December that he was able to get back to his unit, and this was only after he was able to locate the 291st and they sent someone to retrieve him.

This was good book, well edited. Worth the read and I wished I had been able to read it prior to visiting the north shoulder of the Bulge in 2014. show less