CHECK IT OUT

Between the barbecues and weekend getaways, it’s easy to forget the

real reason we observe Memorial Day: to honor those who died in our

nation’s service. For help with remembering why they lost their lives,

numerous resources are available.

With a library card and a VCR, you can rewind history to 18th century

battles for freedom with The History Channel’s “American Revolution”

series. From Paul Revere’s ride to the birth of the republic, this

six-part documentary uses reenactments, commentary and historical

materials to trace events from 1773 to the end of the war.

Other Revolutionary lore is on 14 hours of audiotape in the unabridged

version of Barbara Tuchman’s “The First Salute.” The Pulitzer

Prize-winning historian offers fascinating anecdotes and background about

colorful characters in this slice of American history.

Fast-forward nearly a century for “The Civil War,” Ken Burns’

full-scale film history of the conflict that tore the nation apart. Nine

videos in the series document the epic sweep of the War Between the

States, from the opening guns at Sumter to Lincoln’s assassination and

beyond.

Decades after that skirmish, one of America’s premier fighting forces

was born. From training and shipment overseas to the horrors of trench

warfare in France, military historian George B. Clark provides a popular

history of the U.S Marines in “Devil Dogs: Fighting Marines of World War

I.”

French soil also was the turf for what some call the most important

day in the 20th century. Learn about what transpired on June 6, 1944, in

“D-day,” a narrative about the battle that ended World War II, including

interviews with hundreds of participants from Allied and German forces.

Voices from another contemporary conflict can be heard in “Echoes of

the Mekong,” a dual memoir about an American riverboat commander and the

wounded Vietnamese child he rescued in 1967. Captain Peter Huchthausen

and Thi Lung Nguyen offer candid assessments of American involvement in

Vietnam in this account of their quietly interwoven lives.

Gulf War fighter pilot Keith Rosenkranz offers another personal

perspective about recent combat in “Vipers in the Storm.” Take a

vicarious ride on 30 aerial missions with this inside story about Saddam

Hussein’s defeat and the liberation of Kuwait.

The site that embodies the reason for Memorial Day is the focus of

“Arlington National Cemetery,” a new children’s picture book that depicts

“where heroes rest” in glorious color photography. And even if you never

make it to Arlington, you can still witness Memorial Day ceremonies there

with “The War Memorials,” a one-hour video that provides a moving

reminder of costs America has suffered in defending the cause of freedom.

* CHECK IT OUT is written by the staff of the Newport Beach Public

Library. This week’s column is by Melissa Adams, in collaboration with

Sara Barnicle. All titles may be reserved from home or office computers

by accessing the catalog at o7 https://www.newportbeachlibrary.org.

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