The Long Way Home: An American Journey from Ellis Island to the Great War

As much about the immigrant experience circa 1910 as it is about World War I, David Laskin's The Long Way Home: An American Journey from Ellis Island to the Great War offers a unique perspective - or perspectives - on World War I.

Laskin has painstakingly reconstructed the histories of a dozen young, fresh immigrants to the United States, all of whom - by choice or by chance - return to the "Old Country" as soldiers in their adopted country's army to face the horrors of World War I. The men come from Italy and Ireland, Poland and the Pale of Settlement, and from places that have long ceased to exist (Kaszubia, anyone?). They are driven to the U.S. for all the usual reasons, of course, which generally amounts to seeking an escape from bone crushing poverty. Their experiences here are different - from mining in Montana, gardening in Massachusetts, and of course eking out a living on the Lower East Side (population density 1,000 per square block).

Their roles in war vary as well. Sam Goldberg patrolled the desert southwest as part of the cavalry in the aftermath of the Zimmerman Telegram. Most go to Europe, though, where they are deployed along the Western Front to break a four-year-old stalemate. Here Laskin delves into the politics of fighting war: arranging troops, ordering advances, coordinating positions among men who do not speak the same language. All of this, of course, at a time when messages traveled no faster than a good horse and the messenger might be shot en route. (As a sidenote, I remain fascinated by the fact that the All American Division was comprised of men who spoke 43 languages, but frequently almost no English.)

In Europe some men barely see war, but others become heroes. Michael Valente received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions. And some do not come home.

In many ways, given the U.S.'s late entry into the war, The Long Way Home is a bookend to The Guns of August (still one of the finest World War I histories I've read). It is fast paced and, honestly, fascinating, offering insights on the immigrant's experience as well as the soldier's. All told, The Long Way Home: An American Journey from Ellis Island to the Great War is an excellent read.