A Psychic Brings A Soldier's Story to Life...

Published  posthumously, the idea to produce this book was conceived after Jim Byers experienced retrocognition – a vision from the life of his grandfather who had died 40 years earlier. Little did Jim know that this  was actually his first psychometry reading. Learn more about this  experience on the Psychic Blog.

My American Odyssey is a compelling story derived from a war journal kept by Donald Byers  during his service with the 337th Infantry Regiment of the 85th Division in World War II. He  documents his light-hearted induction into the Army, the rigors of basic  training, and his stark introduction to the reality of war in Italy. As the war progresses, his outlook on the mission and life begin to change as he endures grim scenes and living conditions that no one  should ever experience. 

Edited  by his grandson, James Byers, the book includes maps and photos as well  as letters from home and sent  home as the war dragged on. The latter part of the book outlines Donald’s readjustment to civilian life and how  he tried to make the  promises he pledged to himself while in Italy  come true when he returned  home. 

"On December 30, we packed our duffel bags and rolled our packs. The next morning found us on a train headed for the boat. And still we were wise cracking Boy Scouts. We filed up the gangplank to head for who knew where. There were no bands playing and no crowds to see us off, just a few gray-haired ladies serving black coffee to the tune of drizzling rain pattering on the tin roof of the pier. The ship was the H.M.S. Andes, of the British Royal Mail Line, and had been launched only two years prior to the war. Before we settled down in our compartment on the F Deck, we got a tour of the ship. Our guide got lost. We spent New Years Eve on board and pulled away from the pier at 1030 on January 1, 1944. As I stood on deck watching the United States slip away from me, old familiar faces and places went past my eyes in a kaleidoscope of memories. After I could no longer see the shoreline, I looked out across the ocean toward the imaginative question mark in front of us."

Buy the Book to read letters written home to family and friends as well as Don Byers' personal accounts about his service as a wireman for the Headquarters Company of the 337th Infantry Regiment. The Regiment was part of the 85th Division, 5th Army which served in Africa and Italy during World War II.