Bullets, Bandages and Beans
United States Army Logistics in France in World War I
Alexander F. Barnes and Peter L. Belmonte, McFarland, 2023, 236 pages
Book Review published on: August 22, 2025
Bullets, Bandages and Beans: United States Army Logistics in France in World War I is a nonfiction novel which describes how the "Rear Zone" received, staged, maintained, and transported items needed by the front to fight World War I. Authors Alexander F. Barnes and Peter L. Belmonte discuss the processes, challenges, and support elements from the view of the Services of Supply (SOS). The authors go into depth describing the support elements and individuals needed for this role. The book describes the leadership, organizational strengths, and challenges of providing support for World War I. Barnes and Belmonte are both retired from service in the National Guard and Air Force, respectively, and write extensively about historical events. I recommend this manuscript for individuals interested in history, organizational systems, and providing support over large geographical distances.
Barnes and Belmonte discuss the many elements of the SOS and post-World War I operations. The manuscript discusses in-depth the SOS plan, ports, camps, hospitals, railroad transportation, service organizations, and prisons. The authors share Gen. John J. Pershing's vision for the U.S. soldiers to support their international counterparts as complete infantry brigades. The ports planned to move the soldiers but their supplies, unfortunately, brought the Spanish Flu along with other diseases, which ended up killing more soldiers than the Germans. The camps, along with the hospitals, supported the deployment of soldiers and the transition of equipment. The rail cars were used to carry fuel, supplies, and soldiers to the front; they then returned salvaged material to the rear. Barnes and Belmonte propose that service organizations such as the Red Cross, YMCA, Salvation Army, prisons, and postal express service brought a feel of normal life which was comforting to the soldiers. The authors address each of these SOS elements, their operations and problems, allowing the reader to consider the operational risks and challenges of these elements.
Barnes and Belmonte go in-depth describing the ports, ships, and the challenges of moving resources from the United States to France. They describe the purposes of camps, the race to Berlin, and each of their problems in depth. The railroad which was perceived as essential transportation to the front was devastated by the flu. The purpose of each service organization is described in detail in the book. Due to limitations on personal items, service organizations were vital to keeping the soldiers out of trouble during their time off. Combat soldiers are shown as looking down on the SOS while they worked long hours transporting needed supplies to the front. The last chapters focus on bringing people and equipment out of the area during peace negotiations. Many evaluate success and failure based on goal achievement; however, people, processes, leadership, and situational awareness are all important to achievement of a goal.
Toward the end of the book, Barnes and Belmonte describe seven leaders of the SOS. Several of the leaders described are graduates of military schools. They describe a son of a congressman, a son of a Civil War general, and a graduate of Kansas State University. These leaders are placed in positions of command or given authority over SOS departments. The achievements of these leaders are discussed in short biographies of each person including their assignments during the war. Army Doctrine Publication 6-22, Army Leadership and the Profession, describes selfless service, one of the seven core Army values, by stating it does not mean neglecting families or yourself. However, being too caring may leave people feeling exploited or burned out.
Fremont E. Kast and James E. Rosenzweig believe more explicit understanding of organizations comes from examining patterns and relationships of the systems within the organization. Barnes and Belmonte go to great lengths to describe the process, leaders, challenges, problems, and support elements from the view of the SOS. The manuscript helps to review the SOS from the perspective of official documents, publications, newspapers, periodicals, unpublished sources, and official websites. Looking at the moving parts of the SOS gives us a better understanding of the organization.
The extensive collection of resources used to compile this manuscript is useful to benchmark practices of a large organization during a specific time frame. Reflecting on the systems within an organization helps to gain a more holistic perspective. Individuals interested in examining their organizations should consider the amount of influence any level has over the entire system, and that looking only at a point in time may not generate a plausible theory or conclusion. Organizations looking to improve future performance of large organizations over a large geographical distance would benefit by reviewing the challenges and problems of the SOS.
Barnes retired after thirty years of service in the Army National Guard and Marine Corps as a chief warrant officer. He is currently the command historian for the Virginia National Guard. He has written eight books on military history and has written articles published in the National Defense Transportation Association Journal, Army Sustainment Magazine, and Army Logistician Magazine. He and Belmonte have written several books together on soldiers, war, and Army logistics.
Belmonte retired from the Air Force after twenty years. He is the winner of the "Best Book in the War & Military" category for the Foreword Reviews Gold award and has written on military history and immigration. He graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in mathematics and from California State University with a master's degree in history.
I recommend this book for individuals interested in the process of moving equipment and people from the rear to the front, serving others, or taking risks. Challenges, problems, and leadership of the SOS during World War I are discussed in depth. The authors look strategically at the SOS of the American Expeditionary Forces. It looks at organization's systems, strengths, and weaknesses as an insider. The book leaves you with a feeling of admiration for the SOS and a heightened awareness of the organization, its leaders, strengths, and problems.
Book Review written by: Kathy Kim Strand, MEd, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Notes
1. Fremont E. Kast, and James E. Rosenzweig, "General Systems Theory: Applications for Organization and Management," The Academy of Management Journal 15, no. 4 (1972): 447–65.
2. David Seear, Iso 9001: 2015 into the Future (AuthorHouse UK, 2015).
3. Army Doctrine Publications 6-22, Army Leadership and the Profession (U.S. Government Publishing Office, July 2019).
4. Elizabeth Hopper, "Can You be Too Selfless in Your Relationships?," Greater Good Magazine, 16 April 2018, https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/can_you_be_too_selfless_in_your_relationships.
5. Kast and Rosenzweig, "General Systems Theory."
6. Maxim Sytch, "How to Figure Out How Much Influence You Have at Work," The Seattle Times, 22 February 2019, https://www.seattletimes.com/explore/careers/how-to-figure-out-how-much-influence-you-have-at-work/; Tim Stobierski, "The Advantages of Data-Driven Decision-Making," Harvard Business School Online, 26 August 2019, https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/data-driven-decision-making.