How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
[W]e dug in as best we could in the saturated, root-filled soil. Wind blew and the night actually grew cold. We'd been warned to stay in our foxholes. (14.14)
For most of the fighting, Chester and his buddies live and sleep in foxholes. Sure it's safer there, but is it comfortable? Doesn't sound like it.
Quote #8
For seventeen days, the battle raged. When men ran out of ammunition, many of them fought hand-to-hand using bayonets affixed to their rifles. Combatants dodged from one tree to another. Japanese troops emitted terrifying screams. Everyone refused to give up. (14.44)
This quotation gives us a sense of just how brutal the fighting was during World War II. Hand-to-hand combat using bayonets? No thanks, we'd rather run the other way.
Quote #9
When we left the bunker and started to move forward again, we were totally unprotected. Many men got shot, killed or mutilated, crossing that airfield. (16.29)
In this quotation, Chester describes having to cross an airfield exposed to enemy fire. We get a sense of the danger that the Marines were often exposed to during the fighting with the Japanese. Boy those Marines are gutsy, crossing that airfield and knowing they might be kaput.