I found the HBO series rivetting...so I rushed out and bought the book. Speilberg and Hanks tell a much better story than Ambrose, even if they glossed over the truth a bit. In the series, the soldiers do come off as real heros. In the book, they just seem like whiners. I was surprised at how much Captain Winters goes on and on in the book badmouthing officers both above and below him in rank. In his opinion only Captain Spears and himself seem to be worthy of any credit for the 101st's achievments. It get's tiring hearing soldiers go on at length about the greatness of their company. The producers of the series were right to minimze this...it just seems tachy to be still complaining about other soldiers 50 years later.The letters of a private Webster are quoted at length, simply copied page after page into the book, so much so that his name should have be under Ambrose's on the cover.