In "Patton, The Pursuit of Destiny" by Agostino Von Hassell and Ed Breslin we find a brief biography of General George S. Patton Jr. The authors reveal to us the man Patton which cannot be separated from the General. From stories of his childhood, family history, military training and service to our country we find a man whose passion was to be a great military leader. In the examination of Patton we are given insights to leadership, not just military leadership, which can be a reminder of how to lead people and teams to meet goals and overcome challenges. We also see in the examination of Patton a man, like all other men, who had flaws, which when left uncontrolled caused him not to be able to be a the leader he desired.

I feel that the authors of this book on Patton did an adequate job in relaying details of his life and career to help us see the person and his passion. There were times, during the chapters that focused on WWII, that I felt a little lost in the details of the war. There were pages of military detail that recounted how Patton’s decisions affected his subordinates. I do not know if this detail was necessary to support the thesis of the book.

I am glad I read this book and have filled a few pages in my notebook of the positive leadership lessons that were re-enforced through the study of George S. Patton Jr.

This book review is a part of my participation in the blogger book review service Booksneeze, through Thomas Nelson Publishers. As a part of my participation in Booksneeze I was given a copy of the book to review.