The American people revere their elite combat units, but one of these noble bands has been unjustifiably forgotten--until now.

At the beginning of World War II, military planners set out to form the most ruthless, skilled, and effective force the world had ever seen. The U.S. Marines were already the world's greatest fighters, but leadership wanted a select group to conduct special operations at the highest level in the Pacific theater. And so the Marine Raiders were born.

These young men, the cream of the crop, received matchless training in the arts of war. Marksmen, brawlers, and tacticians, the Marine Raiders could accomplish their objective before the enemy even knew they were there.

These heroes and their exploits should be the stuff of legend. Yet even though one of their commanders was President Roosevelt's son, they have disappeared into the mists of history--the greatest warriors you've never heard of.

Carole Engle Avriett's thorough telling of the Marine Raider story includes:

The personal narratives of four men who served as Marine Raiders Frontline accounts of the Raiders' most important engagements The explanation for their obscurity, despite their earlier fame