What prompted me to write these memories of World War II?
It started with a small diary that I kept of my combat experiences. I decided to rewrite the diary to preserve this bit of personal history for my grandchildren and descendants. This account is a combination of the records in that diary, miscellaneous shipping orders, letters I had written and received, conversations with crew members, and my personal recollections.
I started writing this book over 10 years ago; it has taken a long time to come to completion.
I have elaborated on without embellishing what I recorded, and these, my recollections, join many books written about the 457th Bomb Group.
Into Life’s School describes what it was really like to fly into battle with the 8th Air Force in World War II. This is a gripping and original account of one man’s journey and the everyday drama of the 457th Bomb Group in action. In this true-life story, Cliff Digre hits us in the heart at close range, and we are all the better for it.”—Randall Stutman, son of a crew member
If ever I read a book I couldn’t put down, this was it. I started reading the book and stayed up all night until I finished it.—Glenn, US Air Force, retired, member of the 8th Air Force Historical Society of Minnesota
This book kept my interest and kept me reading far into the early morning hours. I enjoy reading first-person accounts of a man’s experiences during WWII and I highly recommend this book to you. Please take my advice and get this book. You won’t be sorry. —Nancy Toth, 457th Bomb Group Association’s secretary, in the June 2009 Association newsletter