Spearhead (Adapted for Young Adults)

December 15, 2021
Skilled tank gunners face off on opposite sides of the war but complementary sides of history in this young readers' adaptation of the 2019 original. Throughout the European theaters of World War II, the Americans tended to have the numerical and tactical advantages, but in Makos' dogged focus on the particulars of tank warfare, the Germans are undeniably formidable in their Panzer tanks, and everyone knows it. By the time new Pershings roll out to replace the old American Sherman tanks in early 1945, the tides of the war have been shifting toward an Allied victory, but the path remains precarious and bloody. While ample attention is given to the machinery of war, the biographical accounts of the men of the 3rd Armored Division, their lives before the war, and the relationships they develop give a terribly violent account some humanity. Still, war is difficult, and the level of detail in this account, based, among other sources, on interviews with American and German veterans, is gruesome at times. Makos details the German soldiers' and civilians' resentment of the Nazi Party by this point in the war and several instances of pro-American sentiments in their ranks, which draw stark attention to the pointlessness of it all. Passing mention is made of segregation in the U.S. military; the individuals at the heart of this story are White. A detailed and compelling war account for those with the stomach for it. (maps, afterword, sources, photo credits) (Nonfiction. 12-18)

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April 1, 2022

Gr 9 Up-Right from the compelling introduction, teens will be immersed in this story of freedom, heroes, and self-discovery set during World War II. Readers are transported to almost three months after D-Day and will intensely experience war through main subject Clarence Smoyer's eyes. Clarence, an American tank gunner and part of the titular Spearhead unit, is described as "a gentle giant" who "simply wanted to slip through the war without killing anyone. Or getting killed himself." Readers will become emotionally invested in multiple people profiled. Gustav Schaefer is a small, 17-year-old German tanker soldier whose dream was to be a train conductor, not a soldier: "Gustav didn't feel right about fighting Americans." These people and their emotions, as displayed in Mako's work, will leave readers saddened, horrified, and hopeful. Though this book has been adapted for young adults, it does contain many depictions of graphic war violence. VERDICT Readers will be able to envision the atrocities of war through the eyes of these individuals. Due to its content, this is best suited for readers in high school and young adult sections in public libraries.-Megan Honeycutt

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Starred review from February 1, 2022
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Based on an adult best-seller, this young adult work of narrative nonfiction tells the compelling story of three participants in WWII: Corporal Clarence Smoyer, a 21-year-old American tank gunner; Private Gustav Schaefer, a 17-year-old German tank crewman; and 26-year-old German civilian Kathi Esser, who had the misfortune of being caught in the crossfire between American and German forces. The book opens in the fall of 1944 behind enemy lines in occupied Belgium and follows combat action to the end of the war in 1945. Both Clarence's and Gustav's perspectives are offered as the book moves cinematically back and forth between them. With a flare for the dramatic, Makos recreates tank warfare viscerally as he exposes readers to virtually nonstop action, infusing the narrative with teeth-gritting suspense. Meticulously researched, the book's attention to telling detail brings Clarence and Gustav vividly to life while leading readers further into the heart of combat. Makos pulls no punches as he tells the unsparing truth of awful injury and, more than once, death. He writes brilliantly about combat, letting readers experience the life-and-death reality of battle that Clarence and Gustav endured. Interestingly, the book also follows the postwar lives of Clarence and Gustav, showing the lasting impact war had on them. As Makos concludes, war is an ugly business to be good at.

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