In the early 1940s, the graduated brothers of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity at the University of Pennsylvania found themselves separated and dispatched across the globe to fight in World War II. One young graduate, Henry Pope, was kept home, ineligible for service. So he set out to keep the group united by collecting letters from the 73 dispersed alumni, circulating them among the brotherhood through a mimeographed newsletter.

Now these letters have been compiled in Brothers in War: 1943–1945. The compilation outlines the life of war for these brave men. Some played baseball in the Central Pacific. Others ran Italian railroads. One survived 35 combat missions over Germany. Another became a father, and also a casualty in Okinawa. Some lived to tell their stories; the rest will continue to live on in the compilation of these letters.

Letters between soldiers and parents or loved ones have commonly been collected or published. But original WWII letters between friends are rare. This book is unique because it is NOT a collection of memories over 60 years old, which may be tempered by time and subsequent life experience. This powerful narrative takes the reader back to 1943–1945, to the point in time when these letters were written. The historical significance of Brothers in War is its frank depiction of the feelings of these men during wartime.