An incredible journey of traumatic near-death moments, day to day drudgery, amusing situations, and brushes with greatness in World War II. Life for a World War II paratrooper was grave and perilous; John H. Canfield's experience was no different. However, this young man found himself in so many crazy-sometimes humorous-situations that he almost forgot about how dangerous it was. Filled with pranksters and superiors full of bravado and an unfortunate brush with racial bigotry with a fellow African American soldier, Canfield shares his many stories from basic training and jump school. But his best stories are from the war. From having to translate a dinner for an inebriated superior using his scant French, to getting chewed out by none other than General George S. Patton, Canfield shares a wealth of experiences from his WWII tour of the European theater. In Small Victories in a Great Big War, John H. Canfield shows that half the battle is surviving, and that he did. With bravery and flair, Canfield returned home to Connecticut with more than a few amusing anecdotes. More than seventy-five years after the end of World War II, John H. Canfield's stories are now shared with the world.