America's Part

"What part did we take in the Great War? Did we only lend money to our Allies, or did we really fight?" Henry J. Reilly, the author of "America's Part", who was both a Brigadier General and a newspaper correspondent, addressed European cynicism about American participation in World War 1 in this 1928 book. Even ten years after the war's end, the U.S. role in it remained a subject of heated debate. Our allies resented America for contributing too little and too late to the war effort, yet Americans benefited far more than they from the peace. Reilly found that European histories of the war overlooked American forces, failing to discuss their military contribution. "America's Part" was intended to fill this gap in the literature and inform both Americans and Europeans of the true story. Reilly details the goals of American commanders, the challenges they faced, and the pivotal role U.S. forces played in the war's ultimate outcome. - Summary by Ted Lienhart