---
product_id: 4024852
title: "Suddenly We Didn't Want to Die: Memoirs of a World War I Marine"
price: "126.54 DT"
currency: TND
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 10
url: https://www.desertcart.tn/products/4024852-suddenly-we-didnt-want-to-die-memoirs-of-a-world
store_origin: TN
region: Tunisia
---

# Suddenly We Didn't Want to Die: Memoirs of a World War I Marine

**Price:** 126.54 DT
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

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- **What is this?** Suddenly We Didn't Want to Die: Memoirs of a World War I Marine
- **How much does it cost?** 126.54 DT with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.tn](https://www.desertcart.tn/products/4024852-suddenly-we-didnt-want-to-die-memoirs-of-a-world)

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## Description

In the tradition of All Quiet on the Western Front, Elton E. Mackin’s memoirs are a haunting portrayal of war as seen through the eyes of a highly decorated Marine who fought in every Marine Brigade battle from Belleau Wood to the crossing of the Meuse on the eve of the Armistice. Praise for Suddenly We Didn't Want to Die “This beautifully written and truly gripping war memoir is a significant addition to battlefield literature. A minor classic . . . An altogether remarkable job [comparable] to Crane, Remarque and Mailer. Deserves the widest possible audience.” —The Cleveland Plain Dealer “This immediate, eloquent report merit[s] comparison with Thomas Boyd’s Marine Corps [1923] classic Through the wheat .” — Publishers Weekly “A real curiosity: a highly mannered World War I diary, published nearly 80 years after being written and 20 years after its author’s death. Bright snapshots abound…sometimes a young man’s lyricism takes over [but] the horror of war never departs. The diary has the faults one expects, and the promise one prays for. A fine addition to WWI literature.” — Kirkus Reviews “A forthright, eloquent, and powerful memoir certain to become an enduring testament to the drama and tragedy of World War I. Threaded with no small measure of poetry, this superb memoir is sure to become a classic.” —Great Battles “A plain but powerful tale . . . [in] vivid prose loaded with details that bring the horrors of World War I to life, he tells an exceptional new version of the old story of battle transforming a boy into a veteran.” —American Library Association Booklist “To the ranks of Erich Maria Remarque, E.E. Cummings, John Dos Passos and Siegfried Sassoon, we must now add Elton Mackin . . . who, in a terse style reminiscent of Hemingway, [succeeds] in making someone unfamiliar with war truly now the frightfulness of the trenches and the greatness of the many men who fought in them.” —Marine Corps Gazette

Review: One young Marine 's WW1 book is a realistic look at this horrific conflict from his experience. - This is a powerful story of our Marines going to France as America enters World War I in 1918. These Marines are green and have not been tested in combat. Starting with their fight at Bellau Woods until the final days of the war the fight against the Germans in trench warfare, gas attacks, artillery bombs, and hand to hand combat. Our young Marine who is a runner carrying messages through deadly battle fields has in short order given us a first hand look at this horrific conflict. Loved the book. The Authors diary and initial oil skin pages were published years after the war . Great that this book was written as it brings alive for a short time these Marines who gave their all for America.
Review: An essential read for anyone seeking to understand World War I and the role of the common infantryman. - Written in an archaic style in and in third person, this is a genuine combat Marine's memoir of a war which is now 100 years old. As such it is essential reading for any Marines or soon-to-be Marines, and highly recommended for anyone interested in the real experience of the devastating Great War conflict which is now almost forgotten. Yet our modern roots are here. The sense of the inevitability of wounding or death which permeates the expectations of the once-cocky young Marines is an intrinsic part of modern infantry combat, as is the infighting and the leadership incompetence. We are now in an era wherein wars are fought by other people's sons. With that in mind, this is a must-read.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #1,216,330 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #213 in WWI Biographies #1,060 in World War I History (Books) #25,099 in Memoirs (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 119 Reviews |

## Images

![Suddenly We Didn't Want to Die: Memoirs of a World War I Marine - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81UwRmJwNNL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ One young Marine 's WW1 book is a realistic look at this horrific conflict from his experience.
*by J***. on January 25, 2021*

This is a powerful story of our Marines going to France as America enters World War I in 1918. These Marines are green and have not been tested in combat. Starting with their fight at Bellau Woods until the final days of the war the fight against the Germans in trench warfare, gas attacks, artillery bombs, and hand to hand combat. Our young Marine who is a runner carrying messages through deadly battle fields has in short order given us a first hand look at this horrific conflict. Loved the book. The Authors diary and initial oil skin pages were published years after the war . Great that this book was written as it brings alive for a short time these Marines who gave their all for America.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An essential read for anyone seeking to understand World War I and the role of the common infantryman.
*by P***N on September 23, 2017*

Written in an archaic style in and in third person, this is a genuine combat Marine's memoir of a war which is now 100 years old. As such it is essential reading for any Marines or soon-to-be Marines, and highly recommended for anyone interested in the real experience of the devastating Great War conflict which is now almost forgotten. Yet our modern roots are here. The sense of the inevitability of wounding or death which permeates the expectations of the once-cocky young Marines is an intrinsic part of modern infantry combat, as is the infighting and the leadership incompetence. We are now in an era wherein wars are fought by other people's sons. With that in mind, this is a must-read.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Vietnam was nothing new
*by E***N on November 22, 2001*

Mackin's book is a spare, at times profound and almost poetic evocation of the life of a Marine Corps grunt on the Western Front in World War I. The dominant theme is of how men accommodate themselves to the appalling realization that they are in a hopeless situation in which they will be killed, and there is nothing they can do to prevent it, and that no one other than their comrades will ever fully appreciate this predicament: "The folks at home will never know the truth." Mackin writes of the thrill and terror of battle, the feelings of fear and elation, and the awe at seeing other men die: "It is always a show, no matter how terrifying." To deal with this world of fear and death, men developed a sarcasm for weakness: "They make a bitter joke of things to cover feelings"; "We learned to close our minds to the memory of men who fell. We took the way of living day to day . . . We learned to laugh at everything in time. It carried us." Men lost their youth, and in some ways matured, and in other ways were permanently scarred: "There was no singing now . . . The faces had changed. . . . his scars would be deep, and never, never leave his eyes."

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*Product available on Desertcart Tunisia*
*Store origin: TN*
*Last updated: 2026-10-13*