PATTON: A GENIUS FOR WAR

The challenge for any production this lengthy is to keep the listener interested. In the tones of an enthusiastic anchorman, Reese doesn't dramatize, but he genuinely seems to enjoy telling about this colorful and controversial general. Patton was very different from the popular George C. Scott image of him. He liked to write poetry, was privately wealthy, struggled with dyslexia, participated in the 1912 Olympics, and was deeply religious. He was also frequently arrogant, crude and tactless. Part 2 deals with WWII, Patton's campaigns and his friendships and run-ins with Eisenhower, Bradley and Montgomery. Much of the story is told in the general's own words and there are loads of anecdotes to break up the narrative. J.B.G. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/NOV 98]