The Thin Red Line Author:James Jones C-for-Charley Company is made up of men from every walk of life - and right now, most of them are scared. The time is November 1942, and their troop ship is approaching Guadalcanal. The Thin Red Line is their story - a big, powerful novel of men face-to-face with hell, by the acclaimed author of From Here To Eternity. — The hero of this novel is ... more »no single man but an entire company - soldiers who are equally capable of great bravery and obscene cowardice... of deep sensitivity and ruthless brutality. The company commander is Captain Jim Stein, a tough but thoughtful leader who is puzzled by the realization that most of his men hate him. Ed Walsh is the first sergeant - cynical, a little bit crazy, but totally dependable when the chips are down. Before Charley Company can bid a final farewell to this steaming jungle island, its officers and men will go through hell many times over. They will see and do things they had not imagined in their worst nightmarese - and some of them will never leave at all. The Thin Red Line is a novel of overwhelming, vividly detailed drama, a convincing picture of men living moment by moment through the inferno of war.« less