Reddit reviews The Black Devil Brigade: The True Story of the First Special Service Force in World War II, An Oral History

I dig that he is wearing the emblem of the First Special Service Force. That is the red spear patch on his right shoulder that says "USA" over the top and "CANADA" down the middle.

The First Special Service Force was the progenitor to the special forces of both Canada and the U.S. It was a unified commando unit formed during WWII that trained men of mountaineering, woodsmen and other outdoor professions as commandos. The unit had both American and Canadian commanders and they became a cohesive fighting force that learned to fight in darkness, learned to fight hand to hand and use their backgrounds to attack in a variety of environments.

They saw action in the Aleutian islands, Italy (at Anzio in particular) and in France. The Germans came to call them "The Black Devils" because they conducted raids at night with their faces blackened by boot polish.

A good oral history to read is [The Black Devil Brigade: The True Story of the First Special Service Force in WWII]. (https://www.amazon.ca/Black-Devil-Brigade-Special-Service/dp/0935553509)

There is also a Hollywood movie called "The Devil's Brigade" which isn't bad. It depicts one of the FSSF's notable battles where they attacked a mountain top by climbing up a cliff side under fire.

Doesn't look like it's in print anymore but if you can find this book you can read a bunch of his stories. He's featured quite a bit in it. He was a hell of a guy.

One more book and I can't recommend this highly enough:

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Devil-Brigade-Special-Service/dp/0935553509

This is probably the most fascinating book I've ever read.